Refresh
by dooder's nin
Summary: Alfred receives another of Tony's innovations used to remporarily return old food back to younger version of it. So of course, speculation on other possibilities becomes an applied experiment when he forgets about carrying it in his pocket to a conference an it becomes jammed. This sets off an afternoon that turns out to be much to the displeasure of several other personifications


Alfred was sitting comfortably in his kitchen with his tablet in his hands as he read over reports and news stories like usual before getting to far more important endeavors, such as saving the galaxy in the latest game his people had developed and one he was sure Kiku would enjoy as well. As he was sitting there and finishing up his healthy portion of breakfast food he'd gotten from McDonalds since he was up early enough to do so that morning, he noticed Tony walking into the kitchen as well and gave his friend his usual warm greeting. Tony looked over to him and Alfred noticed that his friend seemed like he'd something on his mind. Shrugging at the alien's apparent scheming, something that wasn't too uncommon for his friend's ever curious and inventive mind that Alfred shared with him. Usually it produced something awesome that Alfred was able to employ or to keep from going beyond the confines of his house where it might be less than beneficial. He returned to looking back at his tablet when he saw out of the corner of his eye the gray alien reach for a piece of fruit in the bowl on the table.

"Oh, sorry about that buddy." Alfred said apologetically as he looked up. "I forgot to get more at the market the other day and these aren't lookin' so hot anymore." He said, knowing how much the alien seemed to enjoy fruits. He imagined it had something to do with there not having been as much of a variety or something like that on the other's home planet.

Tony let out his usual curse word that meant he had no problem with the other's mistake. Alfred offered the hash-brown he'd set to the side as a consolation, but the alien gestured negatively. Instead he pulled out something that looked almost like a lighter, causing Alfred to watch in a mix of wonder and wariness. There had been instances when Tony's creations out of the technology available to him with his damaged craft had led to some nasty burns that had taken awhile for Alfred's healing abilities to take care of completely. But all the alien did was only fiddle around with it a bit before flicking a small switch on the side that seemed to turn on some light. The rotten banana slowly lost the brownish tint to it with the light shining on it.

"Whoa…that's so cool." Alfred said as he watched Tony happily munch on the now perfectly ripened fruit. Alfred reached over for permission to look at this one of his friend's creations, Tony obliging him and sliding the small device over. "This could be used in so many situations. Food preservation aside, does it regenerate things or…"

Tony mumbled an answer with several different kinds of profanities, Alfred doing his best to keep up with that and the explanation. "So, it's just a temporary reversal, like an anti-aging thing?" Alfred tried to comprehend, looking over the device. But Tony shook his head again before furthering his explanation. "Oh, so it's probably not a good idea to try and use this for say, medical purposes to help heal people, huh?" Alfred said, a little bummed that the device could only de-age certain things and for an incredibly brief time – long enough for Tony to enjoy a fresh banana without any adverse side-effects, but not enough to provide time to treat any injury or illness. "So it's basically a high-end version of salting or canning foods to preserve it? It is just for food?" Alfred asked, still running through possibilities in his mind for beneficial uses if his friend was alright with the idea.

Tony nodded, but speculated with his friend about what different conditions might produce with that device. There wasn't much left of what that substance the alien had concocted was, but Alfred though t that it was still pretty cool. "It's better than that magic Arthur messes around with though. This gets results. Way to go Tony…" Alfred congratulated his friend, handing the device over to Tony only to have the alien hold up his hand. The usual praise Alfred gave him always made Tony feel welcome and apparently he was returning the compliment by letting Alfred keep the device.

"Oh. Thanks dude." Alfred said, pocketing the device. "I suppose I should be heading out if I'm gonna be able to get to the meeting on time." He said, Tony waving him off with an obscene farewell as Alfred gathered his things.

* * *

Alfred arrived with all the fanfare expected as he energetically greeted the other personifications. It wasn't as complicated as the drawn-out conferences as this was only for a couple of days at most to discuss a few matters. Sometimes these meeting could be done via internet conferencing, but as personifications, some things were better done face-to-face since it was far too tempting to simply mute another personification or altogether disconnect. Alfred had seen that happen between Arthur and Francis all three times they'd attempted that before Alfred had announced that idea a bust.

"Everybody enjoying the great American…" Alfred started to say before Arthur interrupted with a plea for Alfred to just sit down so that they could get on with things. "Straight to business. No wonder you don't know how to have fun." Alfred grumbled as he sat next to his twin, receiving an unamused glare from the British personification.

With that opening behind them, the meeting proceeded like most others. Alfred sighed, elbowing Matthew when he noticed that it seemed Francis was nodding off. Matthew snickered at the image as it seemed like at any moment, the Frenchman would end up on an unsuspecting British personification who was looking down at his papers. Alfred began a countdown from five, Arthur looking up and across the room to questioningly gaze at Alfred before Francis toppled over and onto Arthur. The British man sputtered how undignified it was to have Francis to act that way and how Arthur had never done such a thing – a fact that Ivan was more than happy to correct for Arthur as he was distracted by Francis waking up and smirking at the position he found himself to be in, Alfred laughing loudly at the scene.

"Oh, I need my phone too." Alfred said as he spotted Kiku and Elizabeta already snapping away on their cameras, beginning to search through his pockets. "Oh man, I think Tony was still tinkering around on it for me." He said, emptying his pockets out onto the desk.

"Don't worry aboot it, eh?" Matthew said. "It's not like it won't happen again between those two." He said with a shy smile, eyes widening when Francis decided to toss Arthur's tea in his face.

"Hey, that my move!" Alfred said with a laugh, Arthur wiping his face dry on his sleeve and yelling at Alfred too, tossing the glass over toward Alfred who covered his head with his hands, ducking and knocking some of the various things he'd stuffed into his pockets onto the floor. "What's that all about?" He said, sliding over the table despite Matthew's protest and storming over to break up the fight now that it wasn't as funny as before. Matthew watched as his twin, Francis, and Arthur now were all standing up, head cocked to the side as he heard something beeping. Looking down, he noticed that one of the things on the floor was beeping and flashing a purple light. "America…." Matthew called out as loudly as he could, also getting to his feet. "America!" He tried again, not sure if he should touch whatever it was that was flashing.

Alfred turned around to see what his twin wanted, Francis taking the opportunity to smack Alfred in the behind for something Alfred must've said to him. Although, Matthew knew that such an action from Francis didn't need to have any prompting either. Alfred immediately turned around again, Matthew sighing and getting up to go see for himself what was going on with Alfred's things. He picked it up, but its heat caused him to toss the device up in the air and hiss as the temperature registered.

"Matt, what was that?" Alfred said as he heard the beeping switch to a higher pitch whine, the other personifications noticing Matthew at that point. Alfred pushed Arthur away from him as he walked over to his twin.

"I don't know. It was your metal flashing thing. And it was really hot." Matthew said, holding his hands to him. "I don't know where it fell." He said, Alfred looking over the floor to see if he could spot it.

"You bring explosive device to meeting?! Aiya…" Yao said as he too stood up, eyes wide. Several other personifications also looked concerned, voices rising in panic.

"No, of course not! Why would I do that anyway? We're on my land genius." Alfred said, still looking for the device. "My friend Tony gave it to me this morning. I'm still figuring out how it works but I don't remember it making this noise." He said as he asked for everyone to be quiet. Voices died down but silence met Alfred's ears. He shrugged as he looked around the room. "Guess it stopped…" He began to say before the lights went out. Several groans were heard at the new development but Alfred quickly asked for the other personifications to keep calm. He was suggesting going to look at the breaker himself when there were suddenly several beams of light that shot out quickly. Shouts and screams went out in the hall before the lights went back on.

"Calm yourself people." Arthur shouted in an attempt to regain some order, his voice carrying over the panic. "It was just a power outage. No need to get so…" He started to say before hearing a sound he knew could only belong to a crying child. Looking around, he spotted several infants seated around the room, eyes widening as he took in the predicament.

"This 'ad nothing to do with you, did it Angleterre? You and your magic." Francis said with a scoff as he too looked around the room. Arthur huffed and turned to level a glare at the Frenchman.

"Of course not twit." Arthur shouted to him, smacking him on the arm. "If it was me, I'd have made sure to do something lasting to you." He said, Francis rolling his eyes.

"Um…if it was not you Mr. Britain…" Toris said, a blond infant in his hands with green eyes that were watering up, "…do you have any ideas on how we might fix this?" He said, Arthur realizing that the other man was holding a tiny version of his friend Feliks.

"No. We'd have to ask Alfred." Arthur said before gasping and spinning around. "Alfred!" Arthur shouted, the realization that he hadn't heard or seen the other personification since the lights went on making him terrified to find out what had happened to him. He scanned the area where he'd last seen the American personification, ignoring the Lithuanian man's calls to him.

"Mon ami, a third of the room is like this. He must be in here somewhere and the doors are locked so it's possible he is still…oh, bonjour mon petit…" Francis was saying, stopping and looking down when he felt tiny hands grabbing at his pants. He saw a tiny blonde with large blue eyes staring up at him, curl bouncing as he gestured to be picked up. Francis smiled and gently picked up the tiny personification, Matthew nuzzling Francis' neck in his desire to hide. Francis laughed at the familiar move, Matthew peeking out at Francis' encouragement.

"Francis…que se passe-t-il?" Matthew timidly mumbled as he clung to Francis, Arthur looking terribly upset that his little brother preferred to cling to Francis rather than him. Francis gently pet the top of Matthew's head to calm the little boy, answering in French that everything was going to be alright.

"Mathieu…just for fun, can you tell me your country name, s'il vous plait." Francis said, Matthew looking up to his caretaker curiously before answering.

"Oui. Je m'appelle Canada. Nouvelle-France." Matthew said, Arthur's eyes going wide at the name Matthew gave. It had been a long time since Matthew identified himself as such and he came to the same conclusion as Francis that not only were the others tiny again, but they were in the same mindset as that age.

"Bloody hell…" Arthur murmured as he ran a hand through his hair while Francis hugged Matthew close to him, clearly reveling in the fact that one of his former colonies was tiny again and looking to him for comfort. "Then where the hell has Alfred gone? He wouldn't have just taken off…" Arthur said, bending down to look under the desks to see if Alfred had decided to hide. Instead, he was met with two tiny faces peering out, a little girl wearing a bow in her blond hair and a little boy with a scarf wrapped around his neck. Arthur sighed before looking back up and scanning the room for Ukraine.

"Ukraine! Ukraine, I've found your brother and sister!" Arthur shouted, the well-built woman snapping to attention and jogging over to him as quickly as she could, several other personifications giving her ample room to move past them as they searched for their own friends and family.

"Oh dear…" Ukraine said as Arthur pointed to the desk the two were hiding under, bending over and speaking in Ukrainian to the two in an attempt to coax them out. When that failed, she tried again in Russian, Ivan crawling out from his hiding place only for Natalya to grab his scarf and pull him back. "Natalya! Nyet!" Ukraine scolded her little sister, scooping the two of them up in her arms once they were both within reach. "Oh dear…" Ukraine repeated as she looked to her two tiny siblings before back up to Arthur. "My boss does not want me to spend time with them right now…." She said, eyes watering up. "What am I going to tell him? I cannot leave them when they are like this…" she said, Arthur franticly attempting to hold off on another of the woman's crying spells.

"Ah…um….hopefully this will all be resolved shortly. Even your boss will understand that these are extenuating circumstances Ukraine. Just…don't let them lose, alright?" Arthur said, Ukraine nodding along with his advice and sniffling a little as she held in tears. But at Ivan's gentle touch to her cheek she smiled fondly at him, cooing to him in Russian before doing the same with her sister. Arthur sighed as she walked off to her seat to take care of her younger siblings again, sending a look to Francis that the other man totally understood.

"Aiya….too many of you tiny all at once." Yao's voice drifted over to Arthur, prompting the other man to look over and see a gaggle of tiny Asian nations sitting on the table in front of where Yao was standing, a hand on his forehead. "I cannot do this all over again with you all." He said, Arthur sympathizing with the older personification. Yao had several brothers and sisters that he'd raised over the years, but now they were all the same young age and he was sure that no amount of experience over the millennia could prepare anyone for dealing with them all over again. Britain shuddered at the thought of all of his old colonies suddenly the same young age again, even though he enjoyed caring for them as much as China did for his siblings. He spotted several of his former colonies that attended the meeting still adult size, breathing a sigh of relief. It appeared it was only Canada and America that had been hit with one of those shafts of light.

"Okay, this is totally not awesome." A distinct voice said. "West, do not touch zhat! No! Put me down." Gilbert said, Francis and Arthur taking a few steps in the direction of the Prussian's voice, seeing Gilbert lifted partially off the floor in his chair by the strong chibi-personification of Ludwig.

"Be thankful he's not as strong as Alfred." Arthur told him, Gilbert not seemingly satisfied with that as a consolation.

"This is no good. I did this once before and I am not doing it again." Gilbert said, immediately dropped back to the floor by his younger brother, the blonde looking close to tears. "Oh no, no, no…I didn't mean it. Don't cry. I could never handle ze crying…I thought I got that out of you…" Gilbert said in a panic before Ludwig started to bawl, his voice scaring Matthew into crying too as well as a few other tiny personifications.

"Gilbert! Shut him up!" Hungary shouted as she rocked a tiny version of Austria on her hip to keep the little boy from bursting into tears as well. "He's scaring the others." She said, cradling Roderich to her as his bottom lip trembled from the commotion.

"He's scaring me!" Gilbert said before picking up Ludwig and attempting to soothe the weeping personification. "Okay…it's okay…" Gilbert said softly, the rest of his words in German for his brother. "Hey, you know I'm here for you bruder. I'm not abandoning you." He said, Ludwig's wailing decreasing as he listened to his brother.

"Dieu merci…" Francis mumbled as Ludwig's crying eventually stopped, allowing him to comfort Matthew as well. Many others breathed a sigh of relief at the supposed calm until a gunshot went off by the window. More shouts and crying personifications occurred as a result, Arthur spinning around to see what had happened.

"Oh my God! Alfred!" Arthur said as he finally spotted his former colony holding the gun he always had on him. He'd apparently gotten curious again and decided to fire it off, not ready for the modern weapon compared to the ones he would have been familiar with at that age. "America, lad, did you hurt yourself?" Arthur asked as he rushed over to the personification lying on his back, gun still clutched in his hands. Arthur quickly ran his hands over Alfred, finding that no ricochet had occurred to strike the unsuspecting boy.

"Whoa. That was amazing Iggy!" Alfred said as Arthur pried the gun out of his former charge's hands and sat him up.

"Yes, yes. _Amazing_. Don't do it again." Arthur said sternly, Alfred giggling before reaching for the gun. "No Alfred. I mean it America." He said, Alfred pouting up at his big brother while Arthur tucked the gun into his belt.

"Apparently he's always been found of his guns." Toris said as Feliks still clung to him with wide eyes, looking like he'd barely avoided a panic attack at hearing the gun going off. Arthur gave a sigh in agreement as he once more checked over Alfred.

"Iggy this isn't…" Alfred said before he gasped with wide eyes, making Arthur worried he'd missed something with the baggy clothes that Alfred was swimming in. "Did you finally let me go to _Parliament_?!" Alfred asked, practically bouncing. "You know I've been wanting to see it and be a part of it. You never let me have a seat. Did I miss the trip? Was it your magic or did you take me while I was still sick with that yucky fever and I forgot? Oh wait…we're still on my lands. Did you set up a parliament here? Oh, you could just call it, uh, what's the word for a group of these people…Congress! Yeah, you could call it…." Alfred rambled quickly, getting more and more excited as he tried to run past Arthur to check things out more, only to trip on his too-big clothes and end up face first on the floor. "Owie…" He whined as he rubbed his nose, Arthur opting to pick up the energetic boy and place him on one of the tables like Yao had done to keep track of all of his siblings.

"Alfred, calm down love." Arthur said as Alfred played with the glasses on his face, making Francis wonder where Matthew might have misplaced his own pair. "No, this isn't Parliament dear. It's…"

"Aw…" Alfred whined sadly, shoulders drooping. "You never let me have a say in the big decisions. I'm big enough…This isn't a child-sitting place, is it?" He asked as he wrinkled up his face at the thought, Arthur briefly wondering how he'd reached that idea before realizing the plethora of other younger personifications might have given him that impression.

"It's not a child-care place, Alfred." Arthur said with a laugh. Alfred gave a sigh of relief at that, making Arthur chuckle a little.

"That's good. I thought you were really gonna do what you said the last time you yelled at me." Alfred said, making Arthur furrow his brows in thought at what the other personification meant. "You know…about…making me go to training classes with all the other children as dis..diso…disobedient like bad doggies…You said I was a scurvy dog." Alfred said in a low voice as though fearful of reminding his caretaker.

Arthur couldn't help but laugh at that, easing some of the tension of Alfred's stance. Francis scoffed as he overheard what Alfred said. "You called him a _dog_ , Angleterre? Tsk tsk…" Francis said.

"Those were part of my pirate days, frog. It just slipped out one day." Arthur said, the Frenchman rolling his eyes before gesturing with his head for Arthur to look back over to Alfred. He turned in time to see the other personification slip out of the pants and nearly fall off the table.

"Can we go outside? I'm hungwy…" Alfred asked, big blue eyes pleading for Arthur to acquiesce. "Can you make some of that fish you made for lunch before you left for home again? Pwease." He asked.

"Maybe there is brain damage too. He's asking for _your_ food." Gilbert said, a calmed Ludwig in his arms after the little boy had tired himself out with his earlier crying. Feliciano and Romano were also watching closely, Feliciano looking at a tiny Ludwig with an unreadable expression on his face while Romano dealt with a squirming tiny Antonio. Alfred peeked over Arthur's shoulder to see who was talking to him, eyes going wide at the sight of the albino man. He unconsciously took a step closer to Arthur.

"Who's that guy?" Alfred attempted to whisper to Arthur, regaining the British man's attention from the insult he was about to toss at the Prussian personification. "He's got red eyes like that wolf I saw during the lightning storm." He tried to whisper again, but Prussia smirked at the impression he made on the tiny Alfred.

"Ja, I'm just awesome." Gilbert said, Alfred blushing a little at realizing he'd been heard. He gave a shy smile to the other man and a tiny wave before latching onto Arthur's arm.

"That's Prussia, America. Don't worry about him, poppet." Arthur said. "I think a meal is a good idea. Shall we go now?" He asked, receiving a tiny nod from Alfred who continued to stare at Gilbert, the Prussian winking at the tiny America and causing him to giggle in Arthur's hold.

"Perhaps we should keep all the tiny ones together?" Toris asked, almost as though begging anyone with a smaller personification to commiserate with him as Feliks seemed to be too daunting of a task to handle and Estonia was with Finland and Sweden as they tried to encourage a tiny Iceland to let Norway pick him up. A tiny Denmark was also in that bunch, appearing to try and knock Sweden over as he latched onto his leg, getting no result until he bit the taller Swedish man.

"It could be like playdates." Ukraine said, Toris suddenly looking as though he regretted asking that question with the prospect of having a tiny Ivan around to suddenly become big again.

"No, I don't think they need to be around one another. Whatever hit them, I'm hoping, isn't permanent." Arthur said, hearing Romano the most vocal about the prospect of this taking too long to wear off. "I'm no expert at whatever it was that Alf…uh…that was brought in earlier, but it might be best to just keep calm and bring them back to your rooms to supervise them until the effects begin to wear off." He said, lifting Alfred into his arms.

"Who's that?" Alfred asked, pointing to his twin in France's hands. "How'd France get another of me?" Alfred asked in childish wonder as he stared at Matthew.

"Oh, this is before I reintroduced the twins. We better do that now in case we need to get together again and we don't want Alfred to start a fight." Arthur said, Francis nodding in understanding. He shifted Matthew a little so that the shier North American was forced to look over to his twin.

"Mathieu…this is Alfred. He is your twin frere." Francis said, Matthew looking up curiously at his 'big brother' as he tried to understand what was going on. "Would you like to have lunch with him?" He asked, fully expecting his polite Matthew to shyly nod despite being afraid.

"No!" Matthew shouted, burying his face in France's shoulder and shaking. "Kuma?" He asked, Francis sighing as Matthew asked for his polar bear. Of course this would be one of the few times the Canadian hadn't brought the bear with him to a meeting, and Francis had to try and explain gently to the nervous boy that his bear wasn't with them at the moment. But this only made things worse, Francis wincing as Matthew began to cry into his ear at being denied his security bear. "Maybe later mes amis. I don't think he's up to lunch yet." Francis said, beginning to walk away.

"But I wanna…" Alfred cried out, reaching for Matthew only for Arthur to pull his hand away. "Not now Alfred. Like Francis said, maybe later, alright? I'll go make you lunch and we can see if your twin is ready to meet you then." Arthur said, Alfred dropping his head onto Arthur's shoulder and yawning. With that settled, Arthur lead the way for the other newly-appointed babysitters out of the meeting room to watch over the tiny personifications until they were back to normal.

* * *

Francis carried little Matthew to his car, wondering how he was going to safely travel with the personification being this size. As it was, Matthew clung tightly to him and the description of the car as another version of the carriages he'd introduced the tiny colony to when he was still New France was not very convincing.

"Mathieu, why do you not trust me, hmm?" Francis said as he set Matthew down on the ground. "Do you think I would try to do something that might hurt you?" He asked, achieving the look of hesitance that he'd been hoping to receive from Matthew.

"No….but it is not the same." Matthew said as he looked at the car as though expecting it to come to life and attack. "Why am I not on my lands mon frere? I thought you said…"

"I know, mon petit, but things have come up since I last visited with you." Francis said, purposely making an attempt not to say anything of his own opinions on the matter that might further confuse and upset the tiny Canada. "I will take you to get out of those clothes that are too big for you and then we can go get a scrumptious meal. Does that sound alright?" Francis asked, Matthew chewing on his bottom lip at the offer of food. After a moment, he gave a tiny nod to Francis, the older personification giving a sigh of relief at having Matthew be so cooperative.

Francis looked over to see Yao dealing with some very uncooperative personifications as he tried to persuade his siblings that the car was safe to get into. "North Korea, do not be doing that to South Korea's hair. I have told you…where is Japan? Japan?!" Yao called out as he did a headcount of the brood he'd been saddled with for the day, franticly searching for the one brother that had always been more difficult. Looking around, Francis spotted a tiny Kiku attempting to walk by himself through the parking lot.

"Yao!" Francis shouted, pointing over to where he saw Kiku. Yao's eyes went wide and he picked up the last sibling that had yet to get in the car, tossing him inside and shutting the door to sprint after his wayward brother. He called out to Japan, the tiny personification finally stopping on the third call and barely avoiding walking out into the road.

"Aiya. Why you not listen to your older brother?!" Yao said as he picked up Japan, the younger personification not looking nearly as startled as the Chinese man. "I tell you to stay with others. Not wander. It is not safe when you do not know the area." He scolded as he walked back to his car, hurrying once he saw that one of the others inside had figured out how to unlock the door and was attempting to lead the way to climb out.

Francis shook his head, a small smile on his face as he looked over to Matthew still on the ground beside him watching the whole thing. "You are a very good little boy Matthew. Come with big brother." He said, Matthew timidly and slowly approaching the car as Francis held open the door for him.

"Alfred, get back inside!" Arthur's voice carried over to them, halting Matthew's progress. Francis sighed but refrained from resorting to Yao's method of simply tossing Matthew inside. Experience had told him that if he was going to be able to have anything other than a silent Matthew, it was best to give him the extra time to comfortably do so on his own. Matthew looked over to see what other spectacle was going on, Francis also amused at the sight of Alfred having climbed through the sunroof of Arthur's car to sit on top of it.

"But Iggy! I like to ride the carriages like this. You can't move it without horses and you can't see anything if you're inside." Alfred said, Matthew gasping as he thought of that himself, looking to Francis worriedly.

"I told you lad. It doesn't need horses. It works without them because there is something within the carriage _like_ the horses to make it move." Arthur said as he got out of the driver's seat to reach for the little boy. "You cannot drive yet anyway young man so why don't you leave it to me to operate?" Arthur said, Alfred giggling as he moved out of Arthur's reach. "America, come here. I'm not in the mood to play these games with you right now." Arthur said sternly, shooting a look to Alfred that had the other boy sighing in disappointment.

"Alright." Alfred grumbled, huffing and crossing his arms as he sat on the roof of the car. "Hey! Hello!" Alfred called out over to Francis and Matthew as he saw them looking over his way. "Do you wanna…" He started to say, only to be unexpectedly scooped off the roof by Arthur who'd taken the distraction as his chance to get a hold of the tiny America. "Iggy, I was only gonna…" Alfred was saying as Arthur began the process of safely strapping Alfred into the back of his car again.

"Is he really my twin frere?" Matthew asked, head cocked to the side as he looked up to Francis. Chuckling, Francis squatted down to be eye level with the younger boy.

"Oui, mon cher. I'm afraid so." Francis said, Matthew's curl bouncing as he looked back over to the car that was now attempting to pull away slowly before looking back to Francis. "But he loves you with all his heart Mathieu. And your twin frere has a very big heart." Francis said as he gently brushed the side of Matthew's face. "If you want to go with him to lunch, I can see if Angleterre will bring America with him." Francis offered, Matthew nodding before looking ready to ask how that would be possible. But Francis picked him up and merely walked briskly to Arthur's stopped car, Romano's chase after a tiny Antonio who was screaming something about 'monstrous beasts' effectively halting all attempts for cars to drive through the parking lot with how nimble a tiny Spain could be. Romano had nearly caught him a few times before Antonio had decided to go between the southern Italian's legs to avoid capture, only to end up being hugged relentlessly by Feliciano. Romano grumbled while Gilbert laughed at the two Italians trying to handle caring for another personification, Romano complaining that if Antonio wanted to be on his own, he wasn't going to chase after him again. Although his action of taking Antonio out of his brother's arms as soon as he'd walked back over to Feliciano contradicted everything he was saying.

"Angleterre, wait a moment." Francis said, tapping on the driver's side window. "Mathieu has changed his mind, mon ami. He would like to know if you two would like to go have lunch together." Francis said as Arthur rolled down the window, Alfred's face pressed against the backseat window. Matthew giggled as he saw the faces Alfred was making, drawing Arthur's attention.

"Alfred, love, what are you doing back there?" Arthur asked tiredly, even though he'd only been caring for him for a short time. Alfred denied doing anything, although the laugh clearly didn't convince Arthur. "Did you have any place in mind for Matthew? Alfred wanted fish and chips but I'm not sure I know of any places that'll serve something Matthew wouldn't mind. I was heading to get Alfred some temporary clothes too." Arthur said, Francis nodding along with him.

"Oui, so was I. There is a place down the road that should be able to have something both boys will eat. I will meet you there in…half an hour?" Francis said, giving directions to Arthur once the British man had agreed to the plan. "Very well. Au revoir." Francis said, Arthur closing his window and pulling away. Francis encouraged Matthew to wave to his twin, Alfred climbing over the backseat to wave out the rear window before the car turned out of the lot.

"Alright, mon petit, we are the only ones left. Please, will you get in the car?" Francis asked a little desperately, Matthew looking terrified yet again at having no more suitable excuses for prolonging entering the vehicle. "Your brother did it just fine, there is nothing to worry about." Francis said, setting Matthew on the backseat. The Canadian tensed up but relaxed as soon as he realized he was on a comfortable seat and that nothing was happening to him. He looked up in surprise to Francis, mouth making an 'o' shape and curl seeming to stand out more as he blinked up to Francis.

"Oooh…you are so adorable." Francis nearly squealed in delight, kissing the top of Matthew's head as he buckled him in and closed the door. Getting in himself, he checked on Matthew once more before heading out to hopefully get some equally adorable clothes for the little boy.

* * *

Francis and Matthew entered the restaurant closer to a full hour later than the planned meeting time, spotting Arthur sitting with an energetic Alfred who was looking at the lobsters in the cases at the side of the restaurant. The American personification was dressed in jeans and a formal-looking blue polo shirt that Francis was sure Arthur had needed the extra time to convince Alfred to wear. His own shopping experience, he was sure, was more rewarding as Matthew let him dress him in several different outfits before politely asking to buy a certain one he'd liked. It wasn't as elegant as Francis would have preferred, but the simple red button down shirt over brown khaki pants looked just as adorable as anything else on a toddler sized person.

"There you are." Arthur said, looking relieved for once at seeing Francis. "I thought you'd given me bad directions on purpose when we got here before you. Alfred's about to start eating the fish out of the tank." Arthur said, looking over Matthew's new outfit with a similar expression of fondness as he'd done when he'd been dressing up Alfred.

"Oui. It is entirely my fault. There were just too many things I wanted to see him in." Francis said, encouraging Matthew to go over and look at the fish while he and Arthur waited to have a table. "There are so many more options available today than when we first found them. I could not resist." He said with a smile, Arthur sighing but nodding along with his longtime friend and enemy.

"Yes, I know what you mean. Alfred was a bit difficult to convince that he couldn't wear the brightly colored underwear on his head." Arthur said with a shake of his head as Francis laughed. "Couldn't understand why anyone would make something so colorful if it was just going to be covered up with more clothes and thought the superman underwear would look nice as a hat." He said, rubbing his face a little at the memory of Alfred running through the store with the underwear on his head.

"Oh, I hope you took pictures." Francis said, Arthur rolling his eyes but not mentioning that he had indeed taken pictures of every outfit that he'd managed to get Alfred into for future blackmail. "Mathieu was such an angel. And you know, women cannot resist a man with a small child, hon hon hon…" Francis said with a seductive smirk to a passing waitress who had been fondly looking at the twins and had caught Francis' look. She blushed as she walked off, Arthur smacking the Frenchman in the arm.

"I don't know where you went with Matthew, but I ended up sharing the store with Yao and all of his tiny siblings. Poor chap, I think he lost track of Kiku again a few times in the store." Arthur said with a sigh. "I thought I saw Toris in the store briefly, but I think Feliks may have, ahem, had an accident and they disappeared for a while." Arthur said, Francis laughing at the news, feeling sympathetic to the Lithuanian having to change the soiled clothes of the other personification.

"Non, I was in a little boutique off one of the main roads. Feliciano and Romano were there with Antonio." Francis said, tapping Matthew and Alfred on the shoulder to get their attention and head to their table. "They must've convinced Gilbert to bring Ludwig with them and Feliciano was more than happy to take over for Gilbert in dressing up his tiny friend." Francis said with a laugh as he and Arthur helped their tiny companions to take a seat.

"I do hope this is over soon. I only bought a couple of outfits." Arthur said, making sure to let Alfred know where the napkin was and to remind him to use it. For their part, the two North American twins were still as they took in the modern world in awe, never having been to a restaurant since they hadn't been common at their age. Matthew was coloring away on the placemat while Alfred continued to talk incessantly with his 'newfound' twin brother. Eventually, they placed their order and Alfred was finally silent as the food was placed in front of him.

"Is everything alright?" Their waitress asked, receiving nods from the two adults with Alfred mumbling something with food in his mouth. She laughed as Arthur attempted to reprimand him for talking with his mouth full. "What's your names you two?" She asked.

"I'm America!" Alfred said once he'd swallowed, the woman looking curiously at him and then to Arthur. The British man nervously laughed before answering that his younger brother felt the need to remind everyone that while his older brother was British, he was _not_.

"Je m'appelle Can…" Matthew tried to answer as well, but Francis answered for him, gently placing a hand on the tiny Canadian's head.

"Oh, all sorts of foreigners are in here today. French just sounds so cute coming from someone so tiny." She said, practically cooing at the twins. "You two look so much alike I could swear you're twins." She said.

"We are! We met today!" Alfred said, Arthur wishing the American would know when to keep quiet. The waitress was only being friendly, but the conversation was becoming a little too close for comfort.

"Oui. They were separated when we each…adopted…them. We are reintroducing them." Francis said as a quick response, not completely lying but hoping that would be enough to steer any more questions away.

"Awww" She replied with a smile. "That sounds like a reason to celebrate. I'll get the two of them an ice cream sundae with their meals if that's alright with you two." She said, Alfred and Matthew looking curious as to what that might be. "Normally the children meals come with a small sugar cookie but this is a special occasion. I'll just charge you the same as a regular full children's meal." She said, Alfred tugging on Arthur's sleeve for answers.

"Alright." Arthur said, the woman finally leaving. "It's a dessert Alfred. You and Matthew will love it. Trust me lad, you won't be able to get enough of it." He said, the woman returning with larger than expected ice cream sundaes and four spoons in case the two boys needed 'help'. Arthur sighed and picked up his spoon, demonstrating like Francis was for Matthew that the strange substance on the table was safe to eat. Alfred picked up the spoon and took a little, cautiously putting it in his mouth before his eyes comically widened and he practically dove into the dessert.

"Easy Alfred, don't go too fast. You might get…" Arthur was saying, watching as Alfred tried to shovel as much ice cream as possible into his mouth as though afraid it might disappear if he wasn't fast enough. Of course, never having eaten the frozen treat before, he quickly dropped the spoon and held his head as the cold temperature of the dessert hit the top of his mouth and caused the unpleasant sensation of brain-freeze. Arthur laughed as he wiped the chocolate smears off Alfred's cheeks. "It's just because it's cold. Wait a moment before starting in on it again. And go slow." Arthur said, Alfred looking as though the ice cream had betrayed him somehow. "Look at Matthew. Just go slow and enjoy the taste of it Alfred." Arthur said as Alfred picked up the spoon again. Looking across the table he saw how his twin brother was eagerly eating the ice cream as well, but not as quickly as Alfred had been, Francis scooping some of the whipped cream off the top that Matthew was knocking off with each clumsy move of his spoon so that there wouldn't be as bad of a mess. Alfred looked up to Arthur a little guiltily at realizing he'd more or less dominated the dessert and Arthur hadn't really shared any like Matthew was doing with Arthur.

"Don't you want some?" Alfred asked, holding up the spoon Arthur had used for that first bite. Arthur smiled fondly at the adoring look on little America's face, taking the offered spoon.

"Why thank you Alfred. I may have just a little." Arthur said, Alfred smiling widely and returning to his sundae, the British man taking a few spoonful helpings too. The ice cream was shortly finished between Alfred and Arthur, Matthew sliding over his container for Francis to finish when he couldn't eat anymore.

"You are full, mon petit?" Francis asked, the Canadian known for having just as much a sweet tooth as Alfred when it came to ice cream. "You feeling all right?" He asked, placing a hand over Matthew's forehead. Satisfied that the small boy wasn't ill, his answer to his question was given in the form of a large yawn that escaped Matthew. Francis chuckled as he wiped the remaining bits of ice cream off the boy's face, Matthew sleepily letting him do so. "Uh oh…someone needs a nap." Francis teased, Matthew shaking his head at the suggestion.

"Can I eat the rest?" Alfred asked, looking eagerly at the scoop of ice cream still left in the dish. Francis smirked and pushed the dish over to Alfred, Arthur glaring at him for giving the already hyper personification more sugar. But Alfred had already begun shoveling the remains of Matthew's sundae into his mouth before Arthur could take it away, getting in a few more bites before Arthur took it from him. "Aww…it's so good." Alfred said, pouting up at Arthur and making the other force himself not to give into the pleading look.

"Yes it is. But you've also had a large portion of it already and too much of it isn't good for you Alfred." Arthur said as he placed the bowl at the end of the table and out of Alfred's reach. "After you ate a big lunch too, you should go easy, lad." Arthur said, Alfred sighing and sitting back in his seat and wiping his mouth with his sleeve. "Alfred, what have I told you about that?" Arthur said, grabbing a napkin to try and get the ice cream from ruining the sleeve.

They finished up and headed to the door, Francis carrying an already dozing Matthew and passing an equally exhausted Hungary with a small Austria sitting beside her and trying to successfully use his utensils without help. Alfred shouted out a hello, the woman looking up from the struggling little boy to tiredly smile to the four others before returning her attention to her now tiny ex-husband. Arthur had returned that smile with one of his one, not wanting to be in her place with the awkwardness that could result from that situation in the future between the two personifications.

"What are we gonna do now Iggy?" Alfred asked, involuntarily yawning and trying to hide it from Arthur. Arthur laughed and picked him up before they left, Hungary audibly groaning as Prussia entered with Ludwig and spotted her and Austria almost immediately. Arthur made room for the albino man to walk past him to get to the table with the other personifications, Gilbert surprisingly gentle in handling his younger brother and in greeting Elizabeta.

"I think you and Matthew are in need of a nap." Arthur said, Alfred weakly protesting as he snuggled against Arthur's chest as he was carried back to Arthur's car. "Yes, you do. I'm staying at a ho-…an inn not too far away and I think it might be best if you took a nap there." Arthur said, Alfred only making small noises of acknowledgement that he heard Arthur talking to him before softly snoring.

"Perhaps our afternoons will be easier now. They may need to just 'sleep it off' and we'll have our friends back to normal in no time." Francis said, although his optimistic comment didn't quite match the expression on his face as he held Matthew to him.

"Yes, perhaps." Arthur said, Francis sighing at the sight of Arthur and Alfred as they walked back to their cars.

"You know. There are times I miss them like this." Francis said, reluctant to let go of Matthew as they reached Francis' car. "But then again, this would not really work out so well with the way the world is today." He said, Arthur nodding, readjusting his hold when Alfred suddenly moved so that he nearly slipped. But he agreed with Francis, agreeing to meet up with the Frenchman later after the boys had slept a little. He gently tucked Alfred into the backseat of his car, sending a small wave to Francis as the other man pulled away. Turning back to Alfred, he indulged in running a hand through the other's hair and laughing as the cowlick of his didn't move. Alfred sighed and grabbed a hold of Arthur's hand, making content sounds as he cuddled with Arthur. The British man leaned forward and took a moment to let Alfred cling to him before sighing and reluctantly withdrawing so that he can return them to the hotel and provide Alfred with a bed. Whether or not he joined Alfred for that nap was still up for debate in his mind as he drove away.

* * *

Finland was doing his best to keep his hat out of reach of a tiny Denmark, the tiny personification bent on snatching the white hat away from the Finnish man once he realized antagonizing Finland got a response out of Sweden. The three of them were sitting outside at the nearby park, Norway and Iceland off to the side as Iceland needed to have Norway help with fixing his torn sleeve that had been the result of too much tree climbing.

"Denmark, leave my hat alone. You're going to get hurt if you keep running around like that." Finland tried to calmly explain, growing tired with Denmark getting a running start to barrel into him when Sweden was otherwise occupied by a call for help from Norway or with Sealand's 'helping' actions. The little boy had at first thought the idea of finally being superior to another personification to be the best thing in the world and had been adamant that he could boss the two tiny Nordics around, but now he was more or less complaining on an equally distracting level to Sweden to do something.

Finland braced as Denmark came charging at him again, sighing as he tried to do his best to make sure the Dane didn't actually do any damage to either him or to himself in his smaller state. But his dog's attempt to hide behind his owner as Iceland's attention drifted over to him, had Finland stumbling over his dog and getting the full force of Denmark's head-butt to his ribs. "Oomphf…" Finland muttered, Denmark triumphantly shouting as he sat on top of Finland and quickly grabbed the white cap off of him before running off. "D-Den…" Finland tried to say around the lack of air in his lungs, relieved when Sweden swiftly caught up to him and intercepted his escape. He let his head fall to the ground, his puppy licking his face in concern. He pet his dog's chin before he suddenly found himself with another tiny person sitting on his chest as Iceland picked up the white puffy dog. Finland sighed as best he could in that position, whimpering a little at being so overwhelmed by his fellow Nordics as children – he was Santa and children were his specialty. But it seemed Denmark and Iceland were an exception, Denmark especially.

"Iceland…" Norway said, picking up the tiny personification from his seat on Finland, the boy's discarded shirt in hand and now repaired. "Sorry Finland. Good thing children seem to always find you." Norway said as he freed Hanatamago from Iceland's grip to put the boy's shirt back on, the boy calling for his puffin afterward.

"No no…I love children…" Finland said in a small voice, closing his eyes to stop the pounding headache dealing with Denmark all afternoon had created. He was sure Sweden must have an equally painful headache, but he envied the fact that Denmark seemed to only try and trip Sweden after he'd learned how strong the Swedish man's arms were at lunch when he'd sat Denmark on his lap and held him in place the entire time. "I just thought they all loved me too…." He internally whined, hearing Denmark exclaim that he was the king and that he demanded to be put down.

"Fin?" Sweden's voice asked, Finland opening his eyes to see Sweden staring down at him. He tensed under the direct gaze, mumbling that he was fine and rolling onto his side. He held his side as he got to his knees, wondering how Denmark could land such a hit and keep going himself. He felt something wet and looked down, seeing that there was a stain on his shirt from where it seemed Denmark – or Iceland - had snapped the pen he'd had in his front pocket. Hearing Sweden call to him again, he quickly tried to figure out how to avoid embarrassing himself.

"No, no, I'm fine Sweden. I just need, um, a second…" Finland was saying, getting to his feet and trying to cover the red leak from his pen. "I'll be right back." He said, making to go but a strong grip surprised him and he stumbled back.

"Ha ha…I bested my foe! I am true king of the nor-" Denmark was saying from his positon on his side as Sweden held him under one arm, spotting the red stain. But Sweden dropped him before he could finish his boast, reaching for Finland.

"I'm fine. It's just a silly..." Finland said, looking back up from eyeing his shirt to find Sweden much closer than he'd expected, startling him. "It's from the pen he broke…" He quickly said, seeing Denmark spitting the dirt out of his mouth the drop from Sweden's hold had given him. Finland sighed as Sweden reached for the shirt anyway, smearing some of the ink on his fingers to see the damage for himself.

Iceland yawned as Norway held him, his bird clutched in his arms. "How about a naptime? Iceland needs one and Denmark can always be knocked out." Norway said with only a hint of a tease, the Danish personification's eyes widening at the suggestion before he tried to scoot away. But Sweden was able to catch up with him, Denmark struggling to get out of his hold. He continued to struggle, knocking Sweden's glasses askew as the group returned to the hotel.

"What are we supposed to do now? You and Peter are sharing a room, right?" Finland asked, dreading the answer. Sweden nodded, his gaze looking almost apologetic to Finland who'd spent so much time with Sweden over the years to notice the subtleties. They sometimes would share rooms together, but travelling separately this time meant booking arrangements at the hotel were different. Finland sighed, knowing that Iceland would be with Norway for his nap, the older personification unabashedly loving having Iceland call him 'big brother' without the usual grumbling, his younger brother just agreeing to it with all the other chaos going on around him.

"Peter could stay with you and Den and I can share a room." Sweden suggested, readjusting his hold on the personification that looked to have momentarily given up his desire to be 'the king' as he lay upside down in Sweden's hold. "There's always a closet I could lock him in." Sweden said, Finland's eyes going wide.

"Oh, Sweden, you and your jokes…he he he" Finland said, hoping that Sweden wouldn't resort to that. "No, it's alright. He's been rougher on you today and Peter's all settled in with you. I…I can share my room with Denmark for his nap." Finland suggested with a tight smile, mentally regretting each word that was coming out of his mouth. But seeing the relief on Sweden's face, however minimal at Finland's offer, was worth the difficulty in knowing that he was helping the other personification. With that plan in mind, Finland led Sweden and Denmark to his room, Sweden unceremoniously dumping his tiny friend onto the bed and hastily leaving. Finland kept up his tight smile, hoping to be able to keep Denmark calm for a little while. He was met with an odd sight, Denmark still staring at him as he continued to gaze up from his upside down position on the bed.

"You alright Denmark? Sweden didn't hurt you on accident did he? He wouldn't do that on purpose…" Finland said, coming closer to check on the little boy.

"You want to _share_? With me?" Denmark said, as though such a notion was never before offered to him, Finland realizing that such a possibility might be the case if Denmark was just at the beginning of his quest to be the 'king of the north'. He smiled softly, the rest of the afternoon making much more sense now for Denmark's behavior. He felt like kicking himself for not noticing that earlier, having determined at what point in time Iceland was at mentally, he'd assumed along with the others that Denmark must've been at the same time frame, only smaller.

"Oh, of course Denmark. You and I are pals." Finland said. "You can get comfortable and I'll just get out of this shirt, alright?" He asked, Denmark righting himself but still watching all of Finland's moves as though expecting an attack from the other despite his declaration of friendship. He shifted on the bed and had sat back, the clothes that had been a nightmare to get him into being discarded as well. As he was tossing his shoes off, he inadvertently hit the remote Finland had left on the bed, the television quickly coming on.

"Ahh! Demon sorcery! You are in league with Norway!" Denmark yelled, jumping off the bed into the arms of a shirtless Finland, the other personification struggling to hold him securely.

"No, no…" Finland said, wincing as Denmark's fists continued to connect with wherever he could get a hit. "It's not Norwegian magic. It's alright. It…it plays out stories for people to watch, like a picture book and sound all at once." Finland tried to explain, bringing Denmark over to the television and tapping on the glass to show him it wasn't going to suck him inside or that some other horrific fate awaited Denmark should he get too close. Denmark tapped the glass as he'd seen Finland do, eyes widening as galloping horses were suddenly on the screen as the scene shifted. He watched in fascination as the images changed again as the movie played, Finland opting to just take his shoes off as well and climb onto the bed with Denmark in his arms. He smiled to himself as he leaned back, feeling more confident in his abilities in caring for children as Denmark relaxed more. Soon enough, he was yawning as the movie became more dialogue-oriented to fill in backstory and there were less action sequences to keep the young boy's attention.

"It's not a good idea to have no shirt on. You're vul…vulnerable." Denmark said, sounding like Alfred as he tried to find the right words. "I could kill you without your armor on." Denmark said, face pressed against Finland's chest as he fought off impending sleep.

"Then it is a good thing that you and I are friends now, hmm?" Finland said, feeling himself tense just a little at hearing such a threatening statement come from Denmark. There had been a time before he and Sweden ran away from Denmark's house where he had thought that to be a possibility, more so as he worried continuously on the road with Sweden about what might happen if Denmark pursued the two of them. Denmark chuckled at the Finnish man's comment, his breaths eventually evening out as he fell asleep. Finland ran a hand through Denmark's eternally messy hair as he sat up, intending to let Denmark get comfortable alone on the bed.

"No…warm." Denmark said, cracking open his eyes to silently plead with Finland to stay. At that look, Finland felt his resolve crumble and he lay back in the bed, Denmark cuddling up against him and rising and falling with each breath Finland took. Resigned to staying where he was for a while, Finland grabbed the remote to find something to watch while Denmark napped on top of him.

* * *

Ukraine was laughing at the way her brother and sister were happily munching on their candies she'd gotten them, Russia occasionally getting up to move to another seat when Belarus got too close. This dance continued on for a while as they sat in the little café she'd found. The two tiny nations were basically in makeshift clothes that she was able to scrap together quickly for them with what she had available, unwilling to spend too much on them because of her boss, no matter how badly she wanted to dress them up cutely. She sighed as she thought about that, knowing that her boss would have a hard time arguing about a food bill but definitely would've been harsher if she'd spent money on a pretty dress or adorable outfit for her siblings.

"Vanya, come here." Ukraine said, taking pity on her younger brother as he'd begun to look panicked at getting caught up with his sister in his unwillingness to part with the scarf he'd always had on him. Ivan shot her a grateful look as he bounded over to her, Ukraine picking him up and setting him on her lap to adjust the scarf and deal with some of the sticky sugar that Belarus had managed to get in his hair by accident. "Natalya, how is your treat?" Ukraine asked as she held onto Russia, extra cautious to call out to them in their human names.

"вельмі добра" Belarus answered, licking her lollipop again as she took the seat beside them, Ukraine smiling at her younger sister. "May we go look at the pretty flowers again?" She asked, Russia looking up with a similarly pleading expression.

"Please big sister?" Russia asked with a smile on his face. "I liked to see so many different kinds at once." He said, Ukraine tempted to go back to the florist to look around again. But it did become a little awkward after spending so much time there and not getting anything. "Can I have just one flower?" Russia begged, Ukraine looking between him and her sister and feeling any resolve to remain firm crumble.

"Oh, alright." Ukraine said, wondering if she could find another flower shop that they could wander in for a while. Surely her boss could understand just a couple of flowers, she reasoned. The three of them headed back out to the street, Ukraine holding each child by the hand as they went, Belarus still licking the remains of the lollipop.

They were heading down a side street as Ukraine attempted to get back to the main road when Russia tripped again on his scarf. Ukraine stopped to place Belarus on the top of a building corner that acted as a makeshift pedestal so that she could keep track of her little sister. Turning around to help Russia adjust his scarf yet again, she was shocked to find he was not beside her still and Belarus was franticly shouting and pointing after someone who had the tiny Russia scooped under his arm. Ukraine gasped, picking up Belarus and chasing after the man with her brother in his arms, screaming at him in Ukrainian. She panted as she came to a series of streets the man could have gone down, Belarus patting her on the shoulder and pointing in another direction, sounding confident from where she was on her sister's back.

Ukraine went down another side street, spotting the man through an alley on the next street over as he was wrestling with a very angry Russia, the little boy's kicks and hits landing solidly on the man who had no idea he'd just kidnapped a strong personification. Taking the opportunity, Ukraine more or less tackled the man, Belarus shouting from where Ukraine had quickly dropped her to defend her brother. Russia was promptly dropped and ran over to Belarus, the two Slavic personifications holding onto one another as they watched Ukraine get in a good kick to the man's groin, although her laying on top of his face was more likely the reason he passed out so quickly as the lack of air got to him. Standing up over the unconscious man, Ukraine continued to pant a little as she brushed the bangs out of her face and adjusted her clothes.

"Cестра…" A timid boy's voice called out, Ukraine immediately rushing over to scoop her brother and sister into her arms as they both had tears running down their cheeks. Normally it was her that couldn't help crying, but she did her best to keep things to only sniffling as she carried her siblings away in her search for the main road.

"I'm here. I won't let go." Ukraine soothed the two children as best she could, both of them clinging to her tightly. "Are you hurt at all Russia?" she asked, Russia mumbling into her shoulder something she couldn't understand. But she didn't want to linger too close to where he'd been snatched away from her, continuing with as fast a pace as she could manage back to the main road, sighing in relief once she found it. Walking to a bus bench, she sat both siblings down and dried their tears with her sleeve. "Vanya, are you hurt?" She asked again, Russia shaking his head in the negative, Ukraine sighing in relief at hearing that before pulling him close to her. Belarus followed into the hug shortly afterward, the three of them holding tightly to one another as the bus came and they got on to head back to the hotel. The ride was just as quiet as the one from the meeting building, but with a more dampened mood.

"Oh, that's right. Flowers." Ukraine said aloud to herself, gaining her sibling's attention. Getting up from her seat to ask the bus driver a question, making sure to be able to keep her siblings in sight at all times. He answered and the three left the bus at the next stop, the hotel building in sight.

"Where are we going big sister?" Belarus asked, holding her sister's hand while Russia remained firmly in Ukraine's arm. Ukraine smiled down at her little sister before telling her to look up ahead, spotting a park.

"The nice bus driver told me that this park usually has many flowers in bloom this time of year. And it is close to the hotel so we can stay there longer than if we went back to the flower store." Ukraine explained, Russia lifting his head up off his sister's shoulder as his eyes looked eagerly over to see the park come into view, a multitude of different flowers to be seen in the garden. He made an excited noise, Ukraine pleased to see her brother bounce back so quickly from his scare, but her brother had always been able to handle harsh things that came his way. Crossing the street to enter the park, she let Belarus run ahead to the flowerbeds as she gently placed Russia on the ground. She let the two tiny personifications wander on their own, mindful to keep close to them.

"Oh Russia, for you." Belarus said, breaking the stem of a tall sunflower before Ukraine could stop her, the older sibling glancing around nervously as she didn't think picking the flowers here was encouraged, especially since this was one of only a handful of flowers that had been carefully planted. But Russia's face lit up as his younger sister ran over to him with a smile on her face, taking the offered flower. The two little Slavic personifications sat in the flowerbeds happily talking, Ukraine not feeling like she could tell them anything otherwise with what had happened. She sat on a rock nearby, watching the two of them contentedly play with one another like they used to do together, noticing when they both started to yawn.

"Come with me, little ones." Ukraine said, holding out her arms for her siblings to climb into, Ukraine picking them both up again. Her arms were getting tired from carrying them so frequently throughout the day, but it was well worth the strain at having her brother and sister spend the day with her again. Belarus was asleep before she even reached the hotel, Russia fighting to stay awake as Ukraine took the elevator to her floor, the older woman juggling her hold on the two of them as she struggled to open her door.

"There you go." Ukraine said fondly as she tucked Russia and Belarus into her bed, Belarus reaching out and clinging to Russia in her sleep. "You are safe now Russia. You may sleep and I will be right here when you wake up." She said, gently petting the platinum blonde's hair to sooth him to sleep. He sleepily looked up at her before yawning again, Ukraine giggling as her brother fought to stay awake.

"Cпасибо…" Russia mumbled with a genuine look of gratitude in his eyes at having his sister save him. Ukraine smiled again before kissing the top of his head.

"Koнечно" Ukraine said, adjusting the blanket around her brother and sister. "I would not let that happen. Я люблю тебя, братчиk." She said, Russia burying his face in the pillow for his nap and swiftly falling asleep. Ukraine sighed and let herself sink heavily into her chair, feeling the day catching up with her as she too tried to get some rest.

* * *

Ivan vaguely came into awareness slowly, enjoying the comfortable feeling he had surrounding him and the warmth that was coming from his back. He sighed contently as he breathed in the scent of sunflowers, belatedly realizing that he was crushing one in his hand. Finding that odd since the last thing he remembered was being in the meeting room, he made to sit up only to find that he was wrapped securely in the bed. His second discovery was that he was without clothes except for the scarf that he normally took off when he went to sleep.

"Oh Ivan, have I persuaded you to marry me?" He heard Natalya's voice say from behind him, his breath catching as his sisters arms clung even harder to him. "I don't remember how I got you into bed with me…" She said before chuckling, Ivan shaking as he feared he may have done something regrettable. To confirm that this wasn't just a nightmare, he looked over his shoulder to see Natalya in bed beside him, no doubt equally as unclothed as he was under the covers. She didn't let the opportunity go to waste and before Ivan could react, he found himself with Natalya pressing a kiss to his lips as she moved to lay on top of him.

"N-Natalya…" Ivan mumbled as he tried to scoot back, bumping his head on the headboard. He winced at that while the Belarussian woman again threw herself on top of him. Ivan tried to gently push the younger personification off of him, incredibly uncomfortable and muttering in Russian pleas to be let go. Natalya only seemed to find that more amusing and had resorted to using Ivan's scarf to try and keep him still.

"Oh! You two are both okay. How wonderful!" Katyusha's voice interrupted, Ivan slipping out from underneath Natalya and using his scarf as covering. He stood with wide eyes beside the bed, a blush on his face and looking for answers. Embarrassment aside, whatever had happened seemed to indicate his sisters had conspired against him – Ukraine again. The older personification was rubbing sleep from her face as well, smiling sleepily at her younger siblings.

"Vhat…happened?" Ivan asked slowly and firmly, his usual cheeriness not lost but not as prominent in tone. Katyusha was also blushing at seeing that her younger brother was only barely covered by the scarf she had given him so long ago. Natalya also looked like she wanted answers, although her perpetual look directed at Ivan had the Russian personification glancing back and forth between the two women.

"Ah, well…" Katyusha said, looking down and wringing her hands nervously. "I am not sure brother. We were in the meeting room when something of Mr. America's got turned on and there were many little children again in the room." Katyusha said, chancing a look back up at her brother, still imposing despite wearing only a scarf.

"You are saying that dear Ivan and I spent the last…however long ago that was…as children again?" Natalya asked unbelievingly from the bed, the covers wrapped around her as she crossed her arms over her chest. Katyusha nodded to her sister, more comfortable with looking at her as she tried to explain.

"Da. It was only for…" Katyusha began, looking at the clock on the bedside table to see the time, "…for a few hours. I took you two for lunch at a little café after we looked at flowers and then…" Katyusha was saying with a fond smile before it dropped.

"Katyusha?" Ivan asked, noticing the change in his sister's demeanor. He braced himself for what he knew was about to happen, the Ukrainian woman bursting into tears like usual. Natalya shook her head from where she continued to lay, Ivan sighing as his older sister tried to talk through the sobs. "Katyusha, calm down. Vhatever it was, I can always….ah! Vhat are you…" Ivan was saying, not expecting his sister to then launch herself at him and hold him tightly. Natalya watched with narrowed eyes from the bed, looking as though she was about to intervene herself when Katyusha pulled back a little to hold Ivan's face.

"I'm not a good big sister. Forgive me Ivan." Katyusha said, Ivan looking at her suspiciously. He would have expected one of the other personifications to attempt something while he was not capable of holding his own in that state, but his older sister was another story. He gently removed her hands from his face with the hand not currently attempting to keep himself covered, taking a step back.

"Explain." He said bluntly, childish smile still in place despite his concern. Katyusha sniffled a few times, her hands still in Ivan's hold. "Katyusha. Explain." He said again, prompting her to look up at his face.

"I was bringing you back from lunch when you tripped on your scarf." Katyusha said, sitting on the edge of the bed. "I made sure Natalya was safely off the road and when I turned around, a man had picked you up and was running a-a-away…" She said, bursting into tears again at the end. "I-I ran after you with Natalya and we caught up with you, b-b-but I was so w-worried. I sh-shouldn't have l-let that happen." She cried, dropping her face into her hands. Ivan sighed and rubbed his face with his hand, not remembering any of that and unsure of how to comfort his sister.

"Katyusha, you did well." Natalya said, surprising Ivan with the gentleness in her voice as she sat beside her sister, still wrapped in a blanket. She placed a hand on the Ukrainian woman's shoulder, Katyusha shaking her head. "My dear future husband is still here and unharmed. Perhaps we should check him over, just in case." She said, looking over intensely at Ivan.

"Ah…нет, нет." Ivan said, nervously smiling and gesturing with his hand negatively to keep the two women away. "I am fine." He said, Katyusha looking up to him with a concerned look in her eyes. "Katyusha, I am fine." Ivan said again, this time with more sincerity as he gave his sisters his usual smile.

"But there is one thing that I am concerned about." Ivan said after a moment of silence. Katyusha regarding him with an eager expression, clearly hoping to redeem herself. "Vhat are we to do about clothes?" Ivan asked, receiving a smirk from Natalya that had him shaking again in concern. Katyusha's eyes widened as she thought about that, not having considered that her brother and sister would literally grow out of the half hazard clothes she'd made for them from the clothes they had been wearing. She covered her mouth with her hand, eyes wide as she tried to think of something. Natalya took that time to gleefully propose that they would have to find something to do that didn't require clothes, Ivan darting off to the bathroom at that.

* * *

Denmark hugged his pillow more as he woke up, mumbling in his half-asleep state as he aimed to keep comfortable. He cracked open one eye at realizing that his bed wasn't like normal beds, and immediately began to panic as he saw a sleeping Finland underneath him. _Oh, Sweden is going to kill me_ , Denmark thought as he learned that he had no clothes on underneath the cover that Finland must've tossed over them. _I've never been_ _ **that**_ _drunk_ , Denmark thought as he tried to remember what could have possibly lead to him and Finland in bed together, without clothes. But as he checked things over, he breathed a sigh of relief at seeing Finland still had pants on. He quickly got off the smaller personification, Finland sighing in his sleep. Once satisfied he was safely covered in the bed, he tapped Finland on the cheek a few times.

"Finny!" Denmark shouted, succeeding in waking up the sleeping Finland with a start, chuckling at the startled expression on the other man's face.

"Denmark! Oh, you're okay!" Finland said with a wide smile, receiving a confused look from the other man. "Oh, not that you wouldn't be, but it was a…very interesting afternoon…." Finland said vaguely before seeming to realize that the other man was shirtless as well. "Clothes, you need clothes." Finland said, getting off the bed and rifling through his own clothes. He held up a pair of pants, Denmark shaking his head at the offer.

"Not gonna fit me Finland. You know that." Denmark said, Finland looking disappointed. "But I must've gotten drunk or something. You'll need to remind me what I had because this is the best not-hangover I've had afterwards – not that I suffer from those things." Denmark said with a cocky wave of his hand as he repeated the boast Finland had heard several times over the years, both knowing that Denmark was plenty capable of being susceptible to that particular experience.

"No, not drunk. Tiny." Finland said, Denmark shooting him a completely confused look. "Ya, you were a little guy again. Something happened in the meeting room and a bunch of us were tiny again. You and Iceland were small." He said, Denmark still looking at him like he was crazy.

"Bet Norway loved that, huh?" Denmark said as he watched Finland continue to look through his clothes as though he might magically find something of his that would fit the taller Danish man. Finland made a noise of agreement as he searched, a small laugh escaping the Finnish man. "But seriously, um, Sweden wouldn't happen to be coming this way…would he?" Denmark asked, unsure if he'd be able to explain the situation to the fierce, stoic, and very protective ex-Viking should he come to spend time with Finland. This seemed especially so since whatever he'd been doing clearly had affected Finland too.

"Hmm? Oh, no, you tired him out." Finland said, a blush forming on Denmark's face as he tried to determine just how he might have managed that. "You were very determined to best him and be 'king of the north'. You kept biting him." Finland said, sweat beginning to form on Denmark's face as he imagined all sorts of regrettable things he might have done with his friend. "Oh! I bet you'll fit better in Sweden's clothes. I'll call him." Finland said, grabbing his phone and heading out into the hall before Denmark could successfully get out of the bed to stop him. He hadn't even put his shirt on, but Denmark was less concerned about that than what sort of evening he was in for with Sweden. He didn't have to wait long for Finland to return, cheerfully announcing that Sweden would be bringing some clothes for Denmark to borrow, the Dane allowing himself to fall back into the bed. He tensed as soon as he heard a knock on the door, Finland opening it with a happy smile for Sweden.

Sweden looked over to the bed with his usual stoic expression, Denmark doing all he could not to show the panic that was currently consuming him. He expected the large man to attack when he thrust his hands forward, flinching a little before realizing that he was holding clothes out to him. "Oh, thanks Sweden." Denmark said in his usual relaxed manner, feeling the worry leave him at having his friend not jumping to the same conclusion he did when he'd first woken up. He quickly headed off to the bathroom, clothes around his waist as he went. He did his best to compensate with the too-large clothes, figuring this was better than the too-small ones from Finland. He stepped back out into the room to see Finland talking in his usual cheery manner to Sweden, the other man keeping quiet but following all of Finland's movements with his eyes.

"Okay everybody, time to explain over a drink or two." Denmark said, sitting in the chair next to Sweden as Finland remembered to get a shirt for himself too. Sweden reached over and smacked the back of Denmark's head, the other man wincing and shooting an irritated look to his friend.

"For bitin' my legs." Sweden said, Denmark unable to get out more than a confused 'what?' before Finland laughed.

"You see. I told you Denmark." Finland said. "You were a little terror. You kept head-butting me as hard as you could to knock my hat off. I think I have bruises…" Finland said, rubbing his chest and making a displeased face at Denmark, the accused man only shrugging in response.

"So is Icey still small?" Denmark asked, watching Sweden carefully in case he felt the need to give him another hit to the head because of Finland's comments. Finland shrugged, sitting on the bed as he finished buttoning up his shirt.

"Don't know." Sweden said, looking back to Denmark. "Didn't check. Probably not if you are back to this size." He said, Denmark noticing that the other man's glasses seemed to be a little scuffed.

"Oh dear. I can't imagine Iceland will be too happy once he's up." Finland said, biting his bottom lip. "Do you think we should check on them?" He asked, Denmark laughing and shaking his head.

"No way. Not yet anyway. It'll be fun to mess with them later." Denmark said. "But unless you want Norway to take it out on us, we should probably stay a safe distance away." He said, Finland nodding along with him. "I still think we should get some drinks and you can tell me all about your getting the opportunity to see me as a magnificent…" He began to say with a cheeky smile before Sweden cuffed him on the back of his head again. Finland chuckled as the two friends argued, Denmark doing most of the talking, but at least things were back to normal.

* * *

Toris was doing his best to talk calmly with the other two Baltic nations as he stood outside his door, looking weary. He'd been to two different stores to try and find suitable clothes for his eternally picky friend, especially after the first store had ended in such a disaster. Feliks had refused to come out of the bathroom stall for a while, insisting he could clean up his own mess. Truthfully, Toris had been hoping that would be the case, but knew that his friend at that size and age most likely would need help. But he had given Feliks a suitable amount of time while he cleaned his own shirt that had gotten soiled while he'd been holding Feliks to see a certain piece of clothing that he'd been eyeing.

"I'm sorry Lithuania." Feliks said, Toris hushing him and reminding him to call him Toris. "I – I…" Feliks said before sniffling a little, unable to hold back. Toris figured Feliks had been overwhelmed by all the different fabrics and designs available that he'd always been interested in exploring, even at a young age when they were not so available to him. As a superpower, together they'd been able to branch out and Feliks was able to enjoy acting like a prince with all the 'princely accoutrements'.

"It's alright Feliks. Accidents happen. It is nothing you can't overcome like you always do." Toris said, his friend still in the stall. "But we need to finish up soon, alright?" He asked, gently tapping on the door.

"No. I'm like, not ready yet." Feliks said, Toris sighing as his friend, even like this, continued to drag him along with whatever he wanted. He took a deep breath before deciding for once to take charge more, opening the door despite the other's protest. The little boy screamed at the intrusion, his shirt covered him completely but the bunched up underwear that Toris had twisted to keep from falling off his friend at the meeting building were on the floor, a mess.

"I'll help. But we'll need to get you something from here." Toris said, picking up Feliks and setting him on the sink counter as he dried his own shirt. "I know there wasn't anything in particular you liked, but you'll need something." Toris said, Feliks pouting a little. Despite the difficulties his friend was giving him, Toris couldn't help but laugh at him and fondly pet his hair. "I will get you something decent and then we can go to another store, alright? You can find something better there." He said, Feliks pondering that for a moment before looking back up at his friend and nodding.

Something 'decent' had taken another ten minutes to find and another ten for Feliks to dress himself on his own, Toris having to insist that his friend actually wear the underwear and that a dress from the girls' section was not acceptable for him. The second store they'd visited had apparently already been frequented by some of the other personifications, the man at the counter able to provide them with much quicker help after having already dealt with so many other personifications. Feliks had practically demanded that he wear one of the more, effeminate, outfits that was difficult for Toris to agree to letting him wear. But he eventually caved to his friend's wishes and he ended up with a very brightly dressed little boy for the rest of lunch. It was at lunch that he'd ran into Estonia and Latvia trying to take a breather from Ukraine's pleas for help in watching her brother and sister. They'd reluctantly offered to spend lunch with him and Feliks, but it seemed that Feliks' personality was similar enough that they could handle the tiny personifications company, watching what they said and trying to ease the constant tension the young boy had with all the strange developments that had occurred since he'd been that size.

This led to Feliks at one point taking off on his own when he'd been startled again, his natural shyness toward 'new' places and people overcoming his attempts to appear in control and his usual silliness. He'd dropped under the table before Toris could do much of anything and had taken off at top speed through the restaurant. Several plates were dropped as the Polish personification was determined to escape on his own and find someplace to take shelter. Toris managed to sneak up on his friend, Feliks screaming bloody murder as his friend picked him up. There had been several apologies and they paid for their meals quickly, Feliks clinging to Toris tighter than the Lithuanian man had thought possible for one of his size.

Surprisingly, it had been Raivis to provide an activity that would keep the little Polish boy's attention, entertaining him with a sketchbook and coloring tools while he read one of his own books to the boy. Toris and Eduard had remained off to the side while Latvia seemed pleased with himself in keeping a tiny Feliks calm, Toris thanking the two other men for their help.

"Lithuania…" Raivis' voice called over to him as Feliks crawled into the young man's lap, yawning and making himself comfortable. Toris looked up and smiled encouragingly at the equally flighty Latvian personification, Raivis unsure of how to handle having Feliks making himself comfortable. But Toris knew that once Feliks had gotten to know someone, he had no problem making himself comfortable with that person. It would seem that a little Feliks had done just that with the Latvian boy, quickly falling asleep in the other's lap.

"It's alright Latvia. I will take him back to my room." Toris said, gently picking up the now sleeping little boy, Feliks barely making any movement in his sleep as he was shifted around. "Thank you for helping me today." Toris said to both of his fellow Baltic nations. The other two followed his lead through the hotel from where they'd been relaxing in a lobby area that was open enough for Feliks not to worry and not confining enough so that the little boy finally relaxed. Toris gently placed Feliks on his bed, returning to the hall to talk with the other two personifications.

"It was…not as bad as it could have been." Eduard said, fiddling with his glasses for a lack of anything better to say. "I mean, it could have been worse if you ran into Gilbert and a tiny Ludwig. Feliks has an issue with them from time to time and I can only imagine what seeing a fully-grown Prussia would be like for Poland." He said, Toris sighing at the stroke of luck on that part.

"Do you want to take a break? We can go see if there is any tea to be had…or maybe some other form of drink to help cheer you up." Raivis said with a smile on his face, Toris shaking his head fondly at the youngest of their group, knowing what the Latvian was implying.

"Latvia, you are going to have some trouble getting alcohol here in America's lands." Toris said, Raivis blushing a little. "Not that you can't hold your liquor in a way that would put Germany and Prussia to shame, but it might not be the best time to attempt it." He said, Raivis rolling his eyes.

"Then one of you should come _with_ me…" Raivis tried again, Toris smirking at the persistence of his smaller friend. Estonia shook his head, placing a hand on the smaller personification's shoulder.

"I'll go with him for company. It's safer than looking to see if the Nordics are available." He said, Latvia scrunching up his face at apparently being the consolation prize but not saying anything that might jeopardize the possibility of a drink or two. Eduard sent him a small smile, easing some of that hurt from Raivis' face.

"I'll see you both later then. I do not think I should leave him alone in case he wakes up scared and decides to attempt another grand escape." Toris said. "I would have expected that sort of thing from Mr. America. Thank goodness he's not as strong as him." He said with a sigh, briefly wondering how Britain had managed that for as long as he did. The other two said their farewells and headed away, Toris entering his room again and easing himself onto the bed beside the sleeping mini nation. He envied the way that Feliks had fallen asleep so easily, yawning from his own weariness. He adjusted the blankets again before grabbing the book he'd been reading and settling in for a while, his eyes feeling heavier and heavier as he read.

He hadn't even realized when he'd fallen asleep, only to be awoken by a very unmanly sounding scream. He bolted upright, his book sliding to the floor as he tried to get his bearings, unconsciously looking to see if Russia was lingering nearby and had caused said terror.

"Lithuania!" Feliks yelled out, hugging tightly to his friend before Toris was really ready for his clingy friend. They both tumbled to the floor, a naked Poland on top of Lithuania. "Oh, like, this is so totally awkward. What happened?" He asked with a blush on his face as he and Toris disentangled themselves.

"Well, do you remember that Mr. America and Mr. Britain were arguing with Mr. France?" Toris began but Feliks rolled his eyes.

"You'll have to be more specific. That's, like, practically every time we see them." Feliks said, Toris internally admitting that his friend did have a point.

"This morning, at the meeting, I mean." Toris said, sitting back on the bed beside his friend. "Something from Mr. America's alien friend did something to a bunch of other personifications and you were all little again. I…I took care of you for the afternoon." He said, blushing a little again at the end.

"Aww…that's totally sweet of you Toris." Feliks said, hugging his friend again. "But where are my clothes?" He asked, Toris unsurprised at getting straight to his main concern.

"You were too tiny for the clothes you wore to the meeting so I had to buy another outfit, well two outfits, for you. I'm guessing you tore the seams on the fabric when you grew back to normal size in your sleep." Toris said, picking up a lacey piece of fabric that had been on Feliks' shirt. Feliks took it from his friend's hand, admiring the design and the color of the shirt he didn't remember wearing, rambling on about how it must've been fun to go to the children's clothing stores.

"Well….not entirely." Toris mumbled under his breath, wincing when Feliks did actually catch his comment and asked what he meant. Turning from where he'd gotten up to get some clothes for Feliks to borrow, the Lithuanian personification looking a little guilty. "Oh, um…there was a bit of an accident, but nothing you couldn't handle." He said, seeing his friend unimpressed with that answer. "He he he…you may have…soiled yourself a bit in a panic. Totally understandable." He said, Feliks covering his face in his hands as the embarrassment was too much for him. Toris rushed to try and fix how he'd handled that, not intending to tell his friend that detail and completely messing up that plan. "Oh, it's alright. Like I said, you were frightened by all the new things of the modern world that just weren't around when you and I were tiny children. You were just a toddler-age nation for the afternoon Feliks. And you cleaned everything up all on your own." Toris said, Feliks sighing and grabbing a pillow to cover his face. "I don't think anyone realized anything was wrong either. You could've been like Mr. America and running through the store with underwear on your head…he he he" He said in an attempt to cheer up his friend, although such an action probably wouldn't have bothered the occasional cross-dresser that was currently trying to hide in Toris' bed.

"I'm so, like, mortified. I can't believe that happened!" Feliks moaned from where he'd hidden himself under the covers. "I…I can't believe you had to see that. Oooh, please don't tell anyone." Feliks said, uncovering himself a little to peer out at his friend, his green eyes begging for his friend to keep quiet.

"Of course Feliks. I don't plan on telling anyone else." Toris said, returning to getting something Feliks wouldn't argue about wearing. "And we spent the day with Eduard and Raivis. You colored in Raivis' sketchbook and he read you a story. It's fine." Toris said, Feliks dropping his head in his hands again as he let out a dramatic sigh. Despite the situation, Toris couldn't help but have to fight to keep the smile itching to spread across his face from being seen. He politely offered to step out of the room for a moment to give Feliks a chance to compose himself, taking a few steps away before laughing into his hand at the whole situation. He knew he'd have something to threaten his talkative friend with whenever Poland seemed to get too carried away with his gossiping, happy to have his friend back to normal.

* * *

Romano was softly humming as he bounced a tiny Antonio on his knee, sitting outside of a coffee shop with his younger brother while Feliciano talked animatedly to the small Spaniard. It had taken forever to get Antonio into some suitable clothes based on his younger brother's penchant for wanting to take a picture of every different outfit he could get on either Antonio or Ludwig. Gilbert had more or less let Feliciano take over with Ludwig, keeping a close watch and surprisingly comforting his confused younger brother if things became too much for the little boy.

"Isn't it amazing how much a tiny Germany looks so much like Holy Roman Empire used to? Don't you think?" Feliciano asked him, Romano taking a moment to realize that he was being addressed. He'd basically tried to tune his younger brother out as the three of them ate a light lunch from the pastries available at the coffee shop. It wasn't like what they were used to with coffee places in Italy, but Antonio had been satisfied with chocolate milk and a mix of several pastries that Romano was sure was going to give the Spaniard a sugar rush – hence the bouncing on his knee. He's said as much to Feliciano when his brother had tried to call him out on caring by being so kind and attentive to Antonio, but it didn't seem like Feliciano had believed him.

"Oh? Um…I suppose so. The resemblance is uncanny." Romano said, Antonio reaching for his milk carton as Romano paused in entertaining him. "But you know he isn't…that isn't why you wanted to hold him, is it? You better not say anything to the potato-bastard or he might feel upset…nah, go ahead and tell him." Romano said with a chuckle, wondering what kinds of faces Ludwig would make when Feliciano went on and on about the similarities like he'd been doing for a while.

"Oh, no. You're right." Feliciano said, taking a sip of his coffee. "I suppose I should stop thinking about that. It's not very nice of me." He said with a gasp, Romano groaning a little at the change in attitude. "Oh, I'm a horrible friend. I should tell him and apologize and I'll even make him that pasta dish he likes. But maybe I shouldn't say anything and still make the pasta, but tell him I was just thinking about him even though I was really also thinking about Holy Roman Empire…oooh, big brother what do I do?" Feliciano rambled, Romano taking a deep breath and readjusting his hold on Antonio.

"Feli, please stop your complaining. You're as bad as the baby here." Romano grumbled, Antonio shouting out that he wasn't a baby as he reached for another pastry and happily biting into it. "Do what you think is right and stop pestering me about it. You're Ludwig's friend and you and Holy Rome were um, friends, too. It's fine if you think about old friends once in a while." Romano said, looking down at Antonio with a fond smile before realizing what he was doing. "Tell him or don't, but it's not like it's gonna change you and Ludwig being friends if you happen to think he looks a little like somebody else, right? You're not trying to replace Holy Roman Empire with…"

"Of course not!" Feliciano said, slamming his cup down a little forcefully on the table and knocking over Antonio's milk carton. The younger Italian quickly picked it up and set it within reach of the small boy, sighing and apologizing to Antonio. "Oh, I get it. You're so smart fratello." Feliciano said, Romano blushing a little and coughing to hide his pleasure at being complimented. A tug on his sleeve from Antonio turned his attention to the little boy.

"I need to…" Antonio began, hands moving down in a gesture Romano only had to take a moment to understand. He stood up and put the little boy on his feet, taking his hand and heading back into the shop, leaving Feliciano to ponder his issues on his own. He brought the boy into the single bathroom and shut the door behind him. "I cannot do this with you in the room." Antonio said, bouncing as he clearly didn't have the time to argue with Romano.

"I am not leaving you to try and slip out the window again like at the store." Romano said. "I will have my back turned. Just hurry up." He said, Antonio whining again.

"But this is too high." Antonio said. "Why can I not just go…" The little boy began, Romano knowing exactly what the argument was going to be.

"You cannot just go outside wherever. You did not do that in your home, did you?" Romano asked, the Spaniard not seeming to be so careless about this when he'd been first brought to him.

"Of course I do. Everyone has to do this. Where else would I go?" Antonio asked, Romano hearing him trying to get the zipper on his pants to work. "But only in certain areas. I would not have any of my people do so in the middle of town. I am better than that." Antonio said, sounding proud of himself and Romano needing to remind himself that things were different in cleanliness and manners when Antonio was that age. He sighed and helped the little boy undo the zipper, Antonio still arguing that the toilet he was told he had to aim for was still too high. Romano grumbled but did the only thing he could think of, picking up the boy and holding him high enough.

"No, what are you doing?!" Antonio shouted, Romano dropping him back to the floor. He made a face at the little boy as he tried to accommodate him, but at the dance Antonio was doing, he knew he didn't have long to come up with a plan.

"I promise I will not look." Romano tried, Antonio grumbling but nodding and allowing Romano to hold him. Demanding that the southern Italian close his eyes, Romano humored the boy and did his best to keep a grip on him while Antonio did what he needed. He had debated on getting the boy to try sitting on the seat again, but the last attempt at having him understand modern appliances in this area hadn't fared well and he'd ended up fishing the little boy out of the bowl, thanking God and whatever angels were watching over them that Antonio hadn't used the toilet yet. When the Spanish boy was finished and had pulled his underwear back on, Romano placed him on the ground again so that they could finish getting his pants back on. He lifted Antonio up again to get the boy to wash his hands, another feature of modern hygiene that needed some reminding for the little boy.

"You are a lot of work, you know that?" Romano asked as they headed back to Feliciano, the younger brother looking relieved that they had finally returned.

"Everything alright?" Feliciano asked, Romano sighing and nodding his head as he assisted Antonio in getting onto his seat to finish up what remained of their lunch.

"Toilet was too high. We had a bit of trouble but I handled it." Romano said, Antonio blushing as the other summed up their awkward experience. But Feliciano didn't ask any more about it, and the group returned to talking about beaches and ideas for a vacation, Antonio becoming more animated as he spoke of some places in his home. There were moments that the other two personifications had to pause as Antonio used old place names or regions, but they let the little boy chatter on in the carefree, light manner they had grown used to from him.

"Is it time for a siesta?" Antonio asked, wiping crumbs off his face from the last pastry he'd finished. Romano looked up from his phone at that, meeting the same hopeful expression in his younger brother's eyes.

"Are you tired?" Feliciano asked, Antonio giving an emphatic shake of his head that slightly dampened their hopes.

"Not really. But it is always a good idea to take a siesta after a meal this time of day. Then we can be rested for more work." Antonio said, sitting back comfortably in his seat. "I think it might be time for one, don't you? Does your magic box tell you the time of day, too?" Antonio asked as he looked between the Italian brothers.

"Si. And it is the perfect time for a siesta Antonio." Romano said quickly, worried that Feliciano may say something to botch up their chance to get the mini nation to take a nap. "We can take you back to where we are staying and have our siesta there." He said, Antonio looking around in confusion.

"Why is no one else getting ready for their siesta? Do they not have one here?" Antonio asked as Feliciano offered to carry him, the small boy climbing into the northern Italian's arms.

"Not so much." Feliciano said, Antonio making a noise of surprise and confusion as to why people might not take a break after their lunch. But he didn't say much else as they headed back to the hotel, yawning a few times despite his claim that he didn't really need a siesta. He was almost completely asleep by the time Feliciano gently placed him into his bed, rolling over and sighing into the pillow before falling asleep.

"Oh good." Romano said, sitting in one of the chairs in his brother's room. Feliciano smiled over to him and sat beside him.

"I know. What should we do know?" Feliciano asked. "Oh, I know! I'll tell you about what I was thinking about doing for Ludwig while you and Antonio were in the bathroom." He said, ignoring Romano's groan and launching into his plans anyway. He was in the middle of describing the dish he planned on making when Antonio rolled over again in his sleep, almost rolling off the bed.

"He's going to fall off." Romano said, getting up to readjust the tiny personification, enviously looking at the bed from having to spend the day babysitting the actual baby and his younger brother.

"Why don't you sit on one side and I'll sit on the other. That way he won't fall and I can keep talking to you." Feliciano said, sitting on one side of the bed and patting the space on the other side of a small Antonio. Romano huffed but agreed, climbing into bed beside Antonio and letting his eyes close as he listened to his brother ramble, occasionally making a noise whenever he realized that Feliciano had paused for something. Eventually he too was asleep, Feliciano noticing this when he hadn't received the typical apathetic grunt to a suggestion, the northern Italian shrugging and making himself comfortable too.

A couple hours later, Antonio woke feeling arms around him. He smiled, not too worried about such an occurrence since it did happen occasionally with his typical flirtatious attitude that he and Francis shared. He gently lifted one of the arms on him off so that he could lift himself up and possibly slip out of the room before he woke whoever had been his bedfellows. He gasped as he saw both Italian boys in bed with him, pinching himself to see if this was just a dream. He smiled and nearly shook with happiness at this surprise, letting himself fall back into place with a smile still on his face as he decided to wait and enjoy this for however long it might last.

* * *

Hungary was seriously reconsidering why she didn't spend more time with Austria, the little boy aiming to please her in almost any way he possibly could for her assisting him. He'd had his difficult moments where his pride wouldn't allow her to aide in dressing him and eating properly was another difficult task, but he was trying to be a gentleman with her and she was finding it to be absolutely adorable when it wasn't irritating her to no end. But what was really making her wish to spend more time with him, was the fact that although he was doing his best to demonstrate his manners, he was also more aloof than usual and she was able to make him actually smile and laugh a few times. So of course it had been during one of the more difficult moments when she was attempting to help him with his meal that Prussia walked into the restaurant with Ludwig and had promptly joined them.

"What are you doing?" Hungary asked as sternly yet quietly as she could with the albino man. Prussia merely smiled back as he encouraged Ludwig to climb into the booth opposite the two other personifications.

"Lunch. What do you think we are doing?" Prussia said, smirking when it seemed his answer furthered Hungary's irritation. "But I thought it might be good for little Germany to make friends." He said, Hungary realizing that the Prussian was actually concerned for his little brother, the two tiny personifications choosing to stare at one another.

"Very well. I don't suppose anything I say will make you go away." She said, receiving a triumphant smile from Prussia as he sat down opposite her. "How has your day been with Ger…Ludwig?" She said, shooting a look at Prussia to remind him to use their other names.

"Ask him." Prussia said, placing a hand on his brother's shoulder. Germany looked up with wide eyes to his brother before straightening up in his seat and looking as intimidating as one his size could be, answered with a curt 'Fine, ma'am' before looking back over to Austria.

"Don't think you can leave him here with me Gilbert. Not that I wouldn't love for you to join us for the rest of lunch, Ludwig." She said, quickly sending a reassuring smile to the little blonde.

"Ya, well, it's a shame little Aus…Roderich didn't want to come with his brothers. The Italy brothers hijacked my plans and we ended up at a store that the aristocrat would've enjoyed more than we did, huh Ludwig?" Prussia said, Germany shrugging in response and tugging a little at the collar of his shirt that he clearly didn't want to wear.

"Oh, but Ms. Hungary has been very kind." Austria said to Prussia, doing his best to not sound timid or afraid of the other man. He and Prussia often squabbled with one another, Prussia enjoying making things difficult for the Austrian personification from time to time. As an adult though, the hair and eyes were distinctive enough along with the accent that Austria apparently recognized his antagonizer.

"I bet she has little guy." Prussia said, only pausing in his teasing when he placed his and Ludwig's order. "She's very fond of you…" he said, enjoying the blush that spread along Austria's cheeks.

"Ms. Hungary…" Ludwig spoke up, gaining both adult's attention. "I...well…would it be…" He tried to ask, before giving up and looking to his older brother, never feeling quite comfortable with talking to women. Hungary always seemed to be different, but Gilbert knew what his brother wanted to ask.

"Alright Ludwig. Come here." He said, gently lifting the boy into his lap so that he didn't feel so covered by the table. "I'll ask for something like Elizabeta got for Roderich so you can see over the table." He said, Ludwig looking more relaxed at being able to have some semblance of control over his surroundings. Hungary smiled gently at the small German boy, looking back up to Prussia's face with a smile as she watched the other man perhaps unconsciously rubbing his little brother's back in a comforting manner to help Ludwig feel safe.

After that, the two Germanic brother's meals were ready and they began to dig into their meal, Ludwig complaining that the sausage wasn't right to the amusement of his older brother. Austria had decided to start his own conversation with Ludwig, the two of them seeming to get along well enough despite not being very close brothers to begin with, talking about different hobbies. It was when they were talking about Germany's fondness for dogs that the blonde brought the adults back into their conversation, Hungary looking relieved to have Prussia backing off from his attempts to play with the flower the woman had in her hair.

"Bruder, who was it that called you a wolf today?" Germany asked, finishing up the last of his sausage. Hungary arched an eyebrow as she looked to Prussia for answers, the albino man's ego clearly boosted at being reminded of having such an impression on another personification.

"That was America…er, Alfred. He's actually, sort of, distantly related to us." Prussia said, never quite sure how it was that the American personification was connected to them, but there was no denying that he picked up his mind-blowing super strength from somewhere and the closest person to his strength was clearly Germany.

"Huh…" Germany said, head cocked to the side as he thought about it. That also seemed to get Austria's attention, looking for Prussia to elaborate more on that.

"Alright. I think we're just about all done with lunch, aren't we?" Hungary interjected, not willing to try and get into complicated histories with the tiny personifications. "We could all go down to the museum for a little while to walk off that meal. Do you two boys like that idea? It's almost a rule of mine to have an enjoyable walk after such a meal." She said, knowing she'd gotten Prussia to have to bring Germany along at the mention of there being 'rules' he needed to follow. Already the blonde boy was tugging on his brother's sleeve and speaking rapidly in German what she assumed was his pleading not to break a rule. Looking to Austria, she smiled again at the eagerness on his face to wander around a museum, not a concept that had fully formed when he was that age, but she knew the collections of aristocrats had come close and that he clearly was interested in finding out what his impromptu caretaker was suggesting.

Prussia sighed but nodded his head to his brother, Germany looking relieved that he'd be allowed to go along with the 'rules'. Prussia shot a glare to Hungary but at the small 'danke' from Ludwig, he slumped his supposed authoritative stance he'd been attempting to assume with Hungary and he ruffled his brother's hair. Almost immediately, Germany attempted to fix his hair, Hungary laughing and taking pity on him as they walked out of the restaurant to offer him a comb from her purse. She helped Germany to get his hair as well-groomed and slick as he preferred, the two little boys saying their formal goodbyes before they parted.

The four spent the afternoon wandering around the museum, the children's area quickly becoming too boring for Roderich after he'd figured out all the instruments were not as effective as he'd hoped. And the uncleanly nature of the other children was off-putting to Ludwig, Gilbert having to forcibly remove him from the area to keep his younger brother from having any sort of panic attack as he tried to clean everything up with the other children still playing and making new messes.

Eventually, the two boys were getting sleepy from their day, the walk through the museum letting them slowly wind down. Hungary smiled at the ability to have been able to bring them both here, knowing that Prussia likely would have tried to tire Germany out with the usual military techniques he'd passed onto his brother and doing so would have only made Austria sick, the other Germanic personification never one for physical exertion to such an extreme. As it was, she was now carrying Austria and heading out, Germany adamantly refusing the need to be 'coddled' as he described it. As they reached their cars though, Prussia didn't wait for his brother to slowly climb in, instead picking him up by his shirt and lifting him into the car. Germany giggled a couple of times before realizing what he'd done and forcing himself to have a straight face, Prussia again messing up his hair as he strapped his brother into the car.

"Vell, I suppose we'll be seeing each other later then." Hungary said as she finished securing Austria, standing next to Prussia. The albino man nodded before shooting her a wicked smirk that had her on edge. But before she could say anything, the Prussian personification had quickly pulled her to him and snagged a quick kiss. She pushed him off, Prussia laughing loudly at her reaction as she tried to storm off to the other side of her car. She knew that he did that likely to make her mad, but there was a time once where she and him had been close.

Shaking her head at his ridiculous actions, she waited for him to pull out first so she could calm herself, driving back to the hotel with several detours to avoid running into Prussia again. Returning later than was necessary, she carried the sleeping Austria to her room and made him comfortable before attempting to relax for a while with a book she'd brought with her for her down time. After a while she gave up trying, noticing that the little personification had been asleep nearly thirty minutes at that point. She ran a hand over her face before sighing and deciding to try and take a shower to feel not so dirty after that surprise kiss. She was in the middle of washing her hair when she heard a shout coming from beyond the bathroom door. She hastily washed the shampoo from her hair and grabbed the towel, dashing back out to the bed to see what had happened. She nearly dropped the towel at the sight that greeted her, Austria back to adult size and age again and scrambling to cover himself and find his glasses. She knew that like America, the Austrian only wore them for a sense of looking dignified, but it was still amusing to see the other personification looking a mix of incredibly flustered, embarrassed, and confused. He spotted her though and she immediately realized what it might look like with the both of them essentially unclothed again in front of one another. Austria's eyes went wide and his mouth opened and closed a few times before he managed to stutter out a response.

"H-Hungary, I can explain…no, no I can't…but I-I-I…"Austria tried to recover, Hungary making sure that her towel kept her sufficiently covered before bursting into laughter. She still had feelings for the Austrian man and he'd sweetly tried to be accommodating with his own feelings by sending her 'anonymous' gifts and cards over the years.

"Austria, we've had a _very_ interesting day." She said as she reined in her laughter, enjoying the way the blush was spreading almost onto the man's neck as he tried to piece together what had happened. This was definitely something that exes probably had either dreams or nightmares about, and Austria was clearly trying to determine which was the case at the moment. Trying to keep the charade up for a little longer, she was worried that the other man was going to start hyperventilating if she didn't say something. "Relax Roderich, nothing like what you are clearly thinking about happened." She said, walking closer to him. "There was something strange in one of Mr. America's pockets and it turned a bunch of you into mini versions of yourself again. You were like that for most of the day. Clearly you grew out of the clothes I got you while you were asleep." She said, Austria still not looking convinced. "Come on, lay down and relax before you get yourself all worked up over nothing." She said, gently pushing him down and feeling the man tense under touch as he tried to protest doing anything other than going to get clothes. A soft kiss to his lips shut him up though, Hungary pushing him back onto the bed. After all, there was no rush to get him into his clothes when she certainly didn't have any men's clothes lying around.

* * *

Prussia had laughed boisterously in a way that would put America to the test, his younger brother looking at him like he'd gone mad. He looked back at the little blonde boy and chuckled a few more times.

"Just me being awesome, bruder. You'll understand when you're bigger." He said, chuckling a few more times. "Or you still won't. You do have difficulties with women, don't you West?" He asked, receiving a confused look at the nickname, Prussia belatedly realizing that the name wouldn't have any meaning for the boy in the backseat at that age. "Oh, don't mind me. It's just an awesome nickname I decided to call you by because I am awesome and so you need to have an awesome name as well."

"Why don't you just call me Germany?" Germany said as though that was the most obvious thing in the world, not understanding at all why his brother would feel the need to give him another name. "Or Ludwig? Why do I need another?" He asked, Prussia beginning to feel uncomfortable. He really didn't want to get into that part of their history, not sure if the little boy would be able to process it anyway.

"Doesn't matter. Won't happen again." Prussia said, spying a bakery and opting to pull into the lot. "How 'bout instead of worrying about that, I'll get you something sweet. I know you like sweet things." He said cheerfully, his little brother's face lighting up at the idea of a promised treat. He laughed again, pleased with the reaction he had from his brother. He thought about offering beer, but caught himself as it might not look so good for a toddler to be downing a pint of beer.

Prussia let Germany pick out his treat, the little boy's face nearly pressed to the glass as he looked over the treats available to him. Eventually, Prussia had to coax him into picking out one of the desserts, settling on chocolate covered fruits that seemed to please the little boy immensely. He remembered the rarity of them for a while when his brother was still so little and pulling together a German nation out of all the different areas. It was no wonder Ludwig was so concerned with rules and order with dealing with that chaotic sort of birth, but the German personification seemed content as he finished up his treat, Prussia sighing in relief as the boy finally gave a yawn.

"Alright. Time for a nap." Prussia said, immediately faced with several protests from his brother that had the ladies at the table next to him fawning over him and his brother. "Ja, I know. You don't get tired so easily, but up you go." Prussia said as he hoisted the barely resisting little Ludwig into his arms and making his way to his car. The two were quickly back to Prussia's hotel room and Germany was sound asleep. Prussia let himself hold his little brother for longer than was necessary, knowing that as an adult, such contact was difficult to get and often was awkward between the two 'manly' nations. But he eventually placed the boy in the bed before deciding to go get drinks from the vending machine for when his brother woke up. He was walking down the hall when he heard shouts coming from a room that sounded like a distressed man's voice. Upon listening further he found that he recognized that voice as belonging to a certain Russian man, two women's raised voices drifting out into the hallway. Resisting the urge to find out more about that, he continued down the hallway only to find France also getting something.

"Ah, bonjour Prussia. Has your afternoon been as eventful as others?" Francis asked, Gilbert nodding his head in shared exhaustion. Both had raised younger personifications before, but it seemed that being out of practice had made the task all the more difficult.

"Ja. Sounds like Russia is back to normal and being chased by his sister again." He said, Francis raising an eyebrow questioningly. "I heard a very Ivan-esque scream from one of the rooms and women's voices." Prussia said, France taking on an understanding and amused expression at the news.

"I wonder why that might be. I thought I saw them coming in when I brought little Mathieu in for his nap and he's…I must go." Francis said, excusing himself and nearly racing down the hall to get to his room. Prussia shrugged as he watched his friend leave, returning to the task at hand before realizing what it was that had caused his friend to panic. _If Ivan and his sister were back to normal after their nap, and Canada has also been put down for a nap_ ….Prussia thought over before nearly dropping his drink as he realized that it was highly likely that once the little personifications were in a deep enough sleep, they'd revert back to their adult forms. It was unsurprising that Francis would feel the need to dash off like he'd had if it had been a while since the boy had first fallen asleep and Gilbert could only imagine what sort of breakdown the Canadian would have at waking up to such a situation. He jogged back to his room, both relieved and disappointed to find that there was still a lump in his bed.

* * *

Arthur had been nearly to the hotel when a sneeze from the backseat earned his attention. Looking into the rearview mirror, he spotted Alfred still wide awake. He sighed before he said anything, knowing that it wouldn't be right to snap at the little boy.

"Alfred, I thought you were asleep, lad." Arthur said, hearing a sharp gasp from Alfred. He smirked at the realization that the little boy had been trying to hide the fact that he was awake from his caretaker so that he could most likely burst out of the car as soon as it stopped to head to something more thrilling than heading inside for a nap.

"I woke up when the carriage woke up." Alfred answered, Arthur not too surprised given his rental car's rather loud ignition. "And I just have too much energy!" Alfred said, thrusting both arms up in the air to prove his point.

"I'm going to strangle that bloody frog later." Arthur grumbled, no doubt in his mind where that extra energy had come from and blaming that extra helping of ice cream Francis had unashamedly given to Alfred.

"Are we gonna do somethin' fun, Iggy? We could play games together or go explorin' the land like you like to do sometimes. Can we work on makin' those maps? I like maps of my lands…" Alfred was saying in the back, no longer working to keep quiet since his secret was out. Arthur chuckled at the little boy's statement, his enthusiasm for an awareness of only his own lands ever present. It was true that Arthur had often taken the little boy out to assist him in filling in maps for future colonial endeavors and to better organize those efforts, turning it into a game for Alfred so that the little boy's attention wouldn't drift or he get angry if he learned _why_ it was that they were exploring.

"No. No mapmaking today Alfred." Arthur said, seeing Alfred's face fall a little at the denial of his request. _It was no wonder he'd pushed for that Lewis and Clark expedition after he'd managed to become his own nation_ , Arthur thought, wondering why he hadn't then applied that love of geography elsewhere. Passing by a playground, Arthur made the last minute decision to turn around and let the little American boy run off that sugar there and hopefully be able to take a nap soon. Pulling up he spotted Yao sitting on one of the benches while several little Asian personifications ran around the playground. Alfred was off towards the jungle gym as soon as Arthur explained the playground's purpose and left him to his own devices.

Arthur sat beside Yao on the bench, the Chinese man looking less calm and composed as he normally tried to portray himself. "Been a long afternoon Yao?" Arthur asked, receiving a long-suffering nod from Yao.

"Too long Arthur-aru. None of them want to listen today it seems." Yao said, shaking his head while Arthur chuckled a little at the other's frustration. "Noodles were everywhere at lunch. North and South Korea keep fighting with one another. Taiwan listens to me but she wouldn't leave without Vietnam and keeps playing around with Vietnam's hair and putting things in Panda's fur. Hong Kong…" Yao was saying, trailing off as he tried to describe his interactions with Hong Kong. "I don't suppose you would mind taking him for a little while?" He asked of Arthur, the other shaking his head and holding up his hands.

"After all the fuss you made about having him back?" Arthur asked, Yao huffing and crossing his arms. "No, thank you Yao, I didn't raise him when he was that age anyway. He wouldn't know me." Arthur said.

"Spain did not seem to mind being with the Italy brothers and he didn't know them when he was that small. Or did he? I cannot keep up with you western nations and your strange ways." Yao said, Arthur doing his best not to respond to that. "Like you and that curse you put on Hong Kong's eyebrows." Yao said, Arthur smirking a little at that comment. He scanned the group of children running around, noticing a lack of a particular little boy.

"China, where is Japan?" Arthur asked as calmly as he could, the other man sitting up straighter and letting out a muffled curse.

"Aiya. He has been wandering away from me all day!" Yao said, standing up and walking over to the playground as he called out for the little boy, breaking apart a fight between the Korean personifications as he looked for the Japanese boy.

"There he is China. He and Alfred are together in the climbing house." Arthur said from where he stood, pointing to the top of the set where the American boy was playing with a worried-looking Japan. "Alfred, what are you doing up there?" Arthur called out, hoping to encourage the little boys to climb back down on their own.

"Making a new friend." Alfred called down. "Watch this!" Alfred shouting, one of the many phrases that little Alfred could say that would make Arthur tense.

"No! America, whatever it is…." Arthur was saying but Alfred had already jumped on the higher bouncy bridge that lead to the slide, catapulting Kiku up and into the slide opening . Yao rushed forward to be able to catch the boy before he was emptied out onto the ground head-first while Alfred's unintentional show of strength had snapped off a few pieces of the bridge. Alfred fell through to the ropes that were underneath in case a child ever slipped from that high up, looking a little stunned that the bridge had collapsed. Meanwhile, one of the pieces that had been broken off from the bridge landed on the upright portion of a teeter-totter that Hong Kong had been sitting patiently on the other end for Thailand to play with him. As a result, he was launched up into the air with a shout, his eyes wide as he suddenly went sailing. Arthur gasped and took a few steps back, catching his former charge and being knocked to the ground, grunting from the impact. He sat up as quickly as he could to check over the now shaking little boy, Yao rushing over with an equally quaking Japan from Alfred's well-intentioned attempt at playing with new friends. Arthur handed over the little boy in his arms to Yao, the Chinese personification gently whispering to them to ease their worries.

"Alfred, come down, right now!" Arthur shouted up to Alfred, the blonde struggling in the ropes. The little boy was clearly getting frustrated with the fruitless attempts to get any progress. Arthur sighed, realizing the boy wasn't being difficult on purpose. "Alright Alfred, calm down. I'll come up to help you." Arthur said, Alfred continuing to struggle despite being told to sit still.

"I can do it on my own." Alfred grumbled, grunting as he tried to keep from slipping back in the ropes. "I don't need you to tell me what ta do…" he said, Arthur sighing at the stubbornness he apparently passed along to Alfred. Although it seemed it was always directed at not being told what to do or not to do by anyone, especially with regards to Britain. Alfred huffed as he gave up trying to take shaky steps on the rope, resorting to tugging on it in his irritation.

"America, stop!" Arthur shouted. "You'll bring the whole thing down on you and get hurt." He said, climbing up a little more quickly as he heard the creaking from the stress Alfred's strength was putting on the playset. "Turn around lad, I'm here." Arthur said, Alfred turning around to see the British man leaning over from where he was holding onto the side of the slide. Arthur encouraged Alfred to slowly come over to him, worried about the fall from this height and wondering who in their right mind would have built such a tall playset. _Then again_ , Arthur thought, _the builder wasn't concerned about superhumanly strong children running around on it when he was designing and constructing the thing._

Alfred reached out to Arthur's outstretched hand, Arthur gently encouraging him to come closer to the edge a little more and holding Alfred to him as soon as his grip was tight enough. Arthur climbed down carefully, Alfred mumbling his apologies for breaking things and for causing trouble. The British man rocked the little boy in his arms, much the same way Yao was currently trying to soothe Hong Kong and Japan.

"You sure you wouldn't prefer swapping all of yours with mine?" Arthur teased, making sure not to mention names in case Alfred got even more upset. He laughed as Yao's eyes dramatically widened at the thought. "No!" Yao shouted, holding the two boys in his arms closer.

"I think that's enough playing for today. It's time for you to take that nap young man." Arthur said, Alfred moaning a little in protest but resting his head on the older blonde's shoulder. The British man smiled before turning back to China to see him corralling all the other small Asian personifications in much the same manner.

Trying again to head back to the hotel, Arthur secured Alfred in his car and drove away as China was still persuading all the others to get back into the car. Arriving back at the hotel, Arthur carried a tiny Alfred to his room. About to place him on the bed, he was surprised when Alfred spoke up.

"Can you sing me a song pwease? I like when you sing to me." Alfred said, hugging Arthur tighter and making the British man respond in kind.

"Alright, lad. One song and then you sleep." Arthur said, beginning a tune he'd sung to the American personification when he'd been his young colony. Alfred sighed contently and relaxed in Arthur's hold.

"Thanks Iggy." Alfred mumbled as he fell asleep. "Love ya…" he said, drifting off to sleep in Arthur's arms, the older man surprised to hear that. There were only a few times when Alfred had been younger when he'd said how wonderful his big brother was to him, and the amount of times since his revolution when he'd verbally admitted to still caring for his brother were few and far between. Not that the American didn't show it in other ways, but it was nice hearing it so sincerely from Alfred again. He placed the sleeping boy in bed, taking the time to take a picture for his own purposes. His phone buzzed and he stepped out of the room so as to not wake up the finally sleeping American.

"What is it Francis? I just got Alfred to sleep." Arthur said tiredly into the phone. He was not in the mood for some ridiculous suggestion from the Frenchman, desperately hoping that he could possibly get in some sleep as well.

"Mathieu is back to normal!" Francis said, Arthur's eyes going wide at the pronouncement. He stuttered out an ineloquent 'huh' and Francis continued. "Oui. He was asleep for only an hour. I left to go get a drink and when I returned, the poor boy was wide awake and confused. Oh, and completely naked…" Francis said, amusement in his voice at that piece of information, Arthur feeling pity for his younger brother at waking up to _that_ scenario. But, Francis _had_ been his guardian and so he figured Matthew probably would have been more familiar in such a situation. "He was so adorable, mon lapin. I was wondering if our dear Alfred was awake yet but apparently not." Francis said.

"No. He woke up after I started the car. The engine scared him." Arthur said, wondering how long it would take for Alfred to be back to normal. "Do you know if everyone else is their usual self again?" He asked.

"Ivan and his sister appear to have returned to their usual selves according to Gilbert." Francis answered, Arthur sighing at that piece of information. "I do not think Ludwig is back to normal yet since when I spoke with Gilbert, he had just gotten him to take a nap. As for the others, I have not a clue." Francis said. "I was calling mainly to see if you 'appened to have Mathieu's glasses." He said, Arthur thinking over where he had put both twins' glasses.

"Oh, yes. I can bring them over." Arthur said, quietly and quickly sneaking back into his room to grab them. "You should have asked for them earlier or carried them around yourself." He said, Francis scoffing at the usual lecturing stance Arthur tended to take.

Arthur quickly returned Matthew's glasses to the grateful Canadian, the man wearing clothes that Arthur recognized as coming from Francis' wardrobe. He'd given the younger personification a brotherly pat on the back as he said how glad he was to see the other man well before announcing that he needed to return to his room. He wasn't gone long, but if all it took for the personifications to revert back to normal was a deep sleep, he didn't doubt that Alfred would be back to normal probably sooner than it would have taken the others. He knew that Alfred could be pretty much a lump and the sooner he returned the better. He was coming down the stairs when he heard a very loud voice he immediately recognized.

"Oh, hey, sorry, sorry….whoa! Don't step on my sheet!" Alfred was heard saying, Arthur hurrying up to round the corner. He was met with the sight of a bedsheet-clad American man scurrying through the small crowd in the lobby to reach the front desk. He was clutching the sheet tightly but having to backtrack when a little girl, bewildered and amused at the sight of Alfred, had stepped on the edge of the sheet and nearly ripped it away from an unsuspecting Alfred. Arthur rushed over to interrupt Alfred smiling and trying to get the woman at the front desk to help provide him with some information.

"You dolt, what are you doing up?" Arthur asked as he approached the man, helping to gather the bedsheet more for the other man. "Why did you leave the room? You can be such an idiot sometimes Alfred." He was saying, the two of them putting on quite a show for the other guests.

"Me? What was I supposed to think?!" Alfred asked, thanking the woman for her time and more or less being forced to follow after Arthur as the other man pulled the bedsheet toward his room. He tugged back halfheartedly, not exactly keen on streaking through the lobby. "Arthur, slow down…" he pleaded with the British man, but Arthur kept tugging, practically tossing Alfred back into his room. "Alright, what did you do that you need me to fix?" Alfred said as soon as the door was shut, grin in place. Arthur could feel the frustration mounting as the other man continued to stand there. "By the way, where are my glasses? Can't go anywhere without Texas you know." He said, that being the last thing Arthur was able to take before he lunged forward to wrestle with his younger brother. Predictably, Alfred was startled at first before laughing and wrestling with Arthur, quickly pinning him with his strength.

"Get off me!" Arthur yelled, Alfred laughing again and making sure he was covered once more. Arthur huffed and ran a hand through his hair to keep some of the frizz down from messing around with the taller personification.

"Hey, you started it." Alfred laughed. "But seriously, I need my clothes. Italy and his brother may have liked the toga look but it's not workin' for me." He said, fiddling with the bedsheet. "Don't you wear one sometimes too?" He asked, not meaning to be antagonistic but Arthur became irritated anyway.

"None of your business." Arthur asked, retrieving Alfred's glasses and handing them to him. "And for your information, you were the one to make this mess. I spent the better part of my afternoon cleaning up after you." He said, receiving a confused look from Alfred.

"What are you talking about dude? I haven't been messing around in anything more than usual lately." Alfred said, Arthur sighing again.

"Not large-scale this time America. I'm talking about at the meeting. Remember that thing that was flashing?" He asked, Alfred still not following him. "Oh blast it all. You're the one who brought the damned thing to the meeting in the first place. Matthew picked it up after you'd tossed it on the floor for some unknown reason. Nearly burnt himself in the process." Arthur ranted, watching as the other man visibly recalled the meeting.

"Oh yeah. Oops…" Alfred said with a sheepish smile, shrugging at the outcome. Arthur stared at the other man in disbelief at his nonchalant response.

"Oops? Oops?! That's all you have to say?" Arthur said, Alfred laughing as he yet again lost his temper with the other. "America, a third of the countries that met today spent the day as toddlers. You included!" he said, Alfred's laughs stopping.

"Oh, that explains a lot. Still need to get some clothes though." Alfred said, Arthur letting his head fall forward as he shook his head at the other's attitude. "I'll just see if I can call…"

"Here" Arthur said, tossing Alfred an outfit from his own clothes. "I want them back in the same condition though, understood?" He asked, Alfred making a face at the clothes.

"But I'm bigger than you." He said, Arthur painfully aware of the truth in that comment. "I ain't gonna be able to fit in these clothes. And they're so….boring…" He complained, making a face of displeasure at the other man's choices in style.

"Then get used to a toga. Or maybe you and Francis could spend the day…" Arthur began with a smirk, watching as Alfred hastily grabbed the clothes up from the bed and headed for the bathroom. Arthur laughed at that, wondering when it might be the right time to bring out those pictures he had taken of him as a tiny boy again. He sat down in his chair and pulled out his phone, scrolling through the pictures he'd taken and lingering over the last one he'd taken of a sleeping Alfred. The bathroom door banging as Alfred stepped back out into the room startled him and he quickly pocketed his phone. Looking over at the other personification, Arthur couldn't help but burst out laughing.

"Oh ha ha ha" Alfred said sarcastically, playing with the clothes he had on. The pant legs didn't even reach to his ankles and the shirt he'd tried to button looked ready to burst, the clothes not meant for someone of Alfred's height or stature. "I think I might've been better off in the bedsheet." He mumbled, Arthur continuing to laugh at the sight the other man made dressed the way he was at the moment. Alfred scowled and crossed his arms, succeeding in popping one of the buttons off the shirt as his shoulders were too wide. "Alright, alright, calm down before you pass out or somethin'. I mean, I'd totally be able to save you and all, but you're not…would you stop?!" Alfred was saying, growling in frustration as Arthur appeared to compose himself only to burst into another round of laughter.

"Yes, yes. You're right Alfred." Arthur said, taking a few deep breaths to try and stop but still unable to keep a few chuckles from escaping. He stood up and cleared his throat, a smirk still on his face.

"I guess…I dunno…since you did put up with me and all…thanks Iggy." Alfred said, looking like he was doing his best to get that over with as soon as possible. Arthur smiled at that as he regarded the fully-grown Alfred.

"You're welcome. Oh, and one more thing…" Arthur said, deftly taking out his phone and snapping a picture of Alfred dressed as he was before the other had a chance to realize what he was doing. Alfred gave out a shout and made to grab the phone out of Arthur's hand, but the British man was already heading for the door and had shut it in the American's face, laughing as he raced away.


End file.
